UPSC Vs. TARSEM LAL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE respondent before this Court applied to the CPIO of the petitioner -Union Public Service Commission (for short ,,UPSC) seeking the following information:

(2.) THE information, however, was not supplied by the CPIO except to the extent of informing that the meeting referred to at serial No.(ii) was held under the chairmanship of the Chairman, UPSC as per normal procedure. Being aggrieved from the reply furnished to him by the CPIO the respondent preferred an appeal which came to be rejected by the First Appellate Authority. The respondent thereupon filed a second appeal before the Central Information Commission (for short ,,Commission) which, vide impugned order dated 13.5.2011 directed supply of information in respect of items at serial Nos.(i), (iv) & (v). The Commission also felt that the action of the PIO in not furnishing information on the aforesaid points attracted the penal provisions of Section 20 (1) of the Right to Information Act, 2005 and, therefore, issued a show cause notice to him as to why the penalty be not levied on him. Vide subsequent order dated 1.6.2011 the Commission, on recording the statement of the counsel for the petitioner that they intended to challenge the order dated 13.5.2011, kept the issue of penalty on the CPIO in abeyance. Being aggrieved from the orders dated 13.5.2011 and 1.6.2011 the petitioner is before this Court.

(3.) AS regards information at serial No.(i) is concerned, the learned counsel for the petitioner states that the respondent wanted a copy of the minutes only to the extent it pertained to the advice of the petitioner in the matter of disciplinary proceedings against him. He further states that at the time the information was sought the disciplinary proceedings had not been finalised and, therefore, the aforesaid information was not supplied. He also states that the said information has since been supplied to the respondent. In view of the said statement no order needs to be passed with respect to the information mentioned at serial No.(i) of the application of the respondent.