Prime Minister Narendra Modi. | Photo credit: PTI

The University of Delhi on Monday (January 13, 2024) argued in the Delhi High Court that the purpose of a cause of action under the Right to Information (RTI) Act is not to satisfy the curiosity of a third party as it is the Challenging regulations of the Central Information Commission (CIC) order disclosing information about educational qualifications of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Attorney General Tushar Mehta said students’ information was held in “trust” by a university and could not be shared “with strangers” as the law provided an exception.

“Section 6 provides that information has to be provided and that is the purpose. “But the RTI Act is not intended to satisfy a person’s curiosity,” Mr Mehta said.

The RTI Act should not be misused or misused by mandating disclosure of information that has nothing to do with transparency and accountability in functioning of public authorities, argued Mr. Mehta.

Following an RTI plea by an activist, Neeraj, the CIC had on December 21, 2016 allowed inspection of the records of all students who passed the Bachelor of Arts (BA) exam in 1978, the year in which Mr Modi also passed it had.

The plea sought details of students who took the exam in 1978. However, the CIC’s order was stayed by the High Court on January 23, 2017.

Calling the CIC’s order a violation of existing law, Mr. Mehta said “indiscriminate and impractical” demands under the RTI Act for disclosure of “any and all” information would be counterproductive and negatively impact the efficiency of the administration.

“He wants information for everyone about 1978. Someone can come and say 1979; “Someone (can say) 1964. This university was founded in 1922,” Mr. Mehta said.

Earlier, the University of Delhi had challenged the CIC’s order, saying it had “far-reaching adverse consequences” for the petitioner and all universities in the country that hold the degrees of several million students in trust.

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The CIC, in its order, had directed Delhi University to allow inspection and rejected its Public Information Officer’s argument that it was personal information of third parties, saying it was “neither legitimate nor lawful”.

The court will hear the case again in January.