The Delhi High Court on Tuesday verbally remarked that even if the PM Cares Fund is run by the government, it does not lose the right to privacy under the Right to Information Act, Bar and Bench reported.
A division bench of Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia was referring to third parties’ rights under Section 8(1)(j) of the RTI Act that bars the disclosure of personal information, and not the general right to privacy under Article 21 of the Constitution.
The Prime Minister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund was established in March 2020 with the stated objective of being a dedicated national fund to deal with “any kind of emergency or distress situation” in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Even if it is state, merely because it is state, does it lose its right to privacy?” the High Court was quoted as having asked. “How can you say that?”
The bench observed: “Merely because there is an entity discharging certain public functions, or if it is managed, supervised and controlled by the government, it is still a juristic personality. How can you deny such a right [to privacy] conferred on it merely because it is a public authority?”
Upadhyaya said that the RTI Act bars information about third parties being provided in response to a query, Bar and Bench reported. He added that there cannot be a difference between the privacy rights of a public or a private trust under the Act.
The bench made the observations while hearing an appeal seeking the disclosure of the information and documents submitted by the PM Cares Fund to get an income tax exemption.
The Central Information Commission had allowed the plea and directed the Income Tax Department to disclose the information.
In January 2024, a single-judge bench of the High Court had set aside the commission’s directive, ruling that the panel does not have the jurisdiction to order the disclosure of the information under Section 138 of the Income Tax Act.
Section 138 of the Act governs the disclosure of information about taxpayers by the authorities.
The single-judge bench had observed that the provision in the Income Tax Act prevails over Section 22 of the RTI Act, which establishes the information law’s precedence over other laws.
The right to information applicant in the matter had then challenged the ruling before the division bench.
On Tuesday, the counsel representing the petitioner argued that the PM Cares Fund is not covered under the exemption granted in Section 8(1)(j) of the RTI Act. He added that a public charitable trust set up by the government cannot have the right to privacy under the statute, Bar and Bench reported.
The bench will hear the matter next on February 10.
The PM Cares Fund has been the subject of criticism from Opposition parties, who have raised questions about its transparency, and have questioned the need to create the reserve when the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund existed.
In December 2020, the Union government had said in a reply to a Right to Information query that the fund was “owned and established” by the government. However, it said that the fund does not come under the RTI Act because it receives funds from private sources.
In September 2021, it told the High Court that the PM Cares Fund can neither be listed as “the state” nor a “public authority” under the RTI Act.
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