17 July 2008
No, you can not ask for copies of the answer books from the Institute under the RTI Act as the similar request have been rejected and it has been held by the Central Information Commission that it is not in the public Interest and the same should not be made available. In the course of passing such orders it was stated that, "when answer papers are evaluated, the authority conducting the examination and the examiners evaluating the answer papers stand in a fiduciary relationship between each other. Such a relationship warrants maintenance of confidentiality by both of the manner and method of evaluation."
The commissioner has further argued that: "In addition, when a candidate seeks for a copy of the evaluated answer paper, either of his/her own or others, it is purely a personal information, the disclosure of which has no relation to any public interest or activity ..."
Section 8(1)(e) is an exemption on releasing information available to a person in a fiduciary relationship and 8(1)(j) is an exemption on disclosure of personal information "which has no relationship to any public activity or interest, or which would cause unwarranted invasion of the privacy of the individual."
The relevant exclusion provisions are reiterated as per under:
RTI Act, Section 8(1)
Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, there shall be no obligation to give any citizen,-
(e) information available to a person in his fiduciary relationship, unless the competent authority is satisfied that the larger public interest warrants the disclosure of such information;
(j) information which relates to personal information the disclosure of which has no relationship to any public activity or interest, or which would cause unwarranted invasion of the privacy of the individual unless the Central Public Information Officer or the State Public Information Officer or the appellate authority, as the case may be, is satisfied that the larger public interest justifies the disclosure of such information.
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