RTI Act reduced to a joke, Delhi University tells HC on PIL seeking records

Central Information Commission had allowed an inspection of the varsity’s records of students who had passed the BA examination in 1978. (Express illustration)

The Right To Information (RTI) Act has been reduced to a “joke”, Delhi University told the Delhi High Court Thursday, during the hearing of a plea challenging a Central Information Commission direction to allow an inspection of the varsity’s records of students who had passed the BA examination in 1978.

Solicitor General (SG) Tushar Mehta, appearing for DU, contended before Justice A J Bhambhani: “The RTI Act has been reduced to a joke with such queries (seeking records of all students who had passed BA examination in 1978, including that of Prime Minister Narendra Modi). Degrees of two public functionaries were sought. One is the Honourable Prime Minister and the other is a minister.”

The SG said as per the Act, personal information is never to be given unless there is some public interest, and the degrees were already in public domain on different forums.

The CIC had directed DU to allow inspection of records of all students who had passed examinations for the BA degree in 1978, the year in which, as per the varsity, Prime Minister Modi had also cleared the examination. ens