TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2025 (10) TMI 794
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....bmissions of GST from the financial year 2008 to 2023 of six different industries from Tq. Udgir, Dist Latur. Those are M/s. Vyankateshwara Mahila Audyogik Utpadak Sahakari Sanstha, Udgir, M/s. Aniket Trading Company, Udgir, M/s. Mayureshwar Trading Company, Udgir, M/s. New Prasad Products and Agencies, Udgir, M/s. Kalyani Trading, Udgir and M/s. Prasad Industries, Udgir. 4. In pursuance of the application the Information Officer issued notice to the concerned Industries seeking response on the application. The concerned Industries responded with objection to provide information to the Petitioner. Thereafter, the application filed by the Petitioner was rejected. The counsel for the Petitioner in this regard submits that the Information Officer ought not to have issued notices to the concerned Industries and that the information ought to have been provided to him without issuing notice to the Respondents. Thereafter, the petitioner filed an appeal under Section 19 (1) of the RTI Act before the First Appellate Officer/ Deputy State Tax Commissioner. The Petitioner preferred separate appeals. The Appellate Authority rejected the appeals for the reason that the firms has denied consen....
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....ned are required to be issued notice and heard as they are not parties before it. Third party information relates to or has been supplied by any other person (including a public authority) other than the information applicant and has to be treated as confidential by such third party. Where disclosure of third party information is sought, such information must be prima facie treated as confidential by the third party and the procedure under Section 11 of the RTI Act must be mandatorily followed. Section 8 and 11 must be read together. Section 11 (2) encapsulates the fundamental idea that a party whose personal information is sought to be disclosed is afforded the opportunity to contest disclosure. The proviso to sub-section (1) of Section 11 permits disclosure where the public interest in disclosure outweighs any possible harms in disclosure highlighted by the third party. 9. For ready reference Section 8 and Section 11 of the RTI Act are quoted below: "Section 8. Exemption from disclosure of information.-(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, there shall be no obligation to give any citizen,- (a) information, disclosure of which would prejudicially affect the sov....
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.... Official Secrets Act, 1923 (19 of 1923) nor any of the exemptions permissible in accordance with subsection (1), a public authority may allow access to information, if public interest in disclosure outweighs the harm to the protected interests. (3) Subject to the provisions of clauses (a), (c) and (i) of sub-section (1), any information relating to any occurrence, event or matter which has taken place, occurred or happened twenty years before the date on which any request is made under section 6 shall be provided to any person making a request under that section: Provided that where any question arises as to the date from which the said period of twenty years has to be computed, the decision of the Central Government shall be final, subject to the usual appeals provided for in this Act. Section 11. Third party information.- (1) Where a Central Public Information Officer or a State Public Information Officer, as the case may be, intends to disclose any information or record, or part thereof on a request made under this Act, which relates to or has been supplied by a third party and has been treated as confidential by that third party, the Central Public Information Officer....
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....he RTI Act the Parliament was cognizant that an unrestricted disclosure of information could be fiscally inefficient, result and would do real-world harms and infringe the rights of others. Thus, the Constitution Bench while quoting the provisions of Section 8 of the RTI Act explained the non-obstante phrase carved exceptions under Section 8 to the general obligation to disclose information under the RTI Act. Therefore, where the conditions set out in any of the sub-clauses of Clause (1) of Section 8 are satisfied, Information Officers are under no obligation to provide information of any applicant. Clause (d) of Section 8 (1) provides that information is exempt from disclosure where such disclosure would harm the competitive position of a third party and the exemption is further qualified by the phrase, unless the competent authority is satisfied that larger public interest warrants the disclosure. Thus, the exemption under clause (d) of Section 8(1) is not absolute but is qualified and cannot be invoked where a larger public interest exists. In the context of clause J of Section 8 (1) explanation provides a qualified exemption from disclosure where the information relates to pers....
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....cuments produced in accordance with this Act, or in any record of evidence given in the course of any proceedings under this Act (other than proceedings before a criminal court), or in any record of any proceedings under this Act shall, save as provided in sub-section (3), not be disclosed. (2) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 (1 of 1872), no court shall, save as otherwise provided in sub-section (3), require any officer appointed or authorised under this Act to produce before it or to give evidence before it in respect of particulars referred to in sub-section (1). (3) Nothing contained in this section shall apply to the disclosure of,- (a) any particulars in respect of any statement, return, accounts, documents, evidence, affidavit or deposition, for the purpose of any prosecution under the Indian Penal Code or the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 (49 of 1988), or any other law for the time being in force; or (b) any particulars to the Central Government or the State Government or to any person acting in the implementation of this Act, for the purposes of carrying out the objects of this Act; or (c) any particulars when such dis....