INDIRA GANDHI TECHNOLOGICAL AND MEDICAL SCIENCES UNIVERSITY Vs. STATE INFORMATION COMMISSIONER, ARUNACHAL PRADESH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India has been moved by the petitioner praying for setting aside and quashing the order dated 28-08-2014 passed by the learned State Information Commission, Itanagar in Case No. APIC-41/2014, whereby the Commission declared the Indira Gandhi Technological and Medical Sciences University, Ziro, as a Public Authority and falls under the ambit of RTI Act, 2005.

(2.) The fact of the case, in brief, is that the respondent No. 2, namely, Dr. Nani Bath, Department of Political Science, Rajiv Gandhi University, Rono Hill, Doimukh filed an application to the Registrar of the petitioner' University seeking certain information and documents under the RTI Act. The Registrar of the petitioner's University verbally informed the respondent No. 2 that the Indira Gandhi Technological and Medical Sciences University being a private university do not come under the ambit of the RTI Act, 2005, for which, the documents sought for by the respondent No. 2 cannot be furnished to him under the said Act.

(3.) Being aggrieved with the verbal information with regard to non furnishing of the documents, the respondent No. 2 has approached the State Information Commissioner i.e. respondent No. 1 by filing a petition in the form of an appeal, which was registered as State Information Commission Case No. APIC-41/2014. The learned Member of the State Information Commission after hearing both the parties, disposed of the said appeal petition vide order dated 28-08-2014 holding that the petitioner's University is a public authority and falls under the ambit of the RTI Act, 2005 and also directed the Registrar of the said University to provide/furnish all the information as sought for by the respondent No. 2. Being aggrieved with the said decision of the State Information Commission, the petitioner has preferred this writ petition praying for setting aside the said decision as stated earlier.