Husband can seek generic income details of wife through RTI to verify evidence in maintenance case: CIC

The Central Information Commission (CIC) recently directed a Central Public Information Officer (CPIO) to furnish a man with only the "generic details of the net taxable income or gross income" of his wife to verify these details in a maintenance case. [Yash Malhotra vs CPIO, lncome Tax Department].In an order dated September 27, Information Commissioner Saroj Punhani noted that in Rahmat Bano vs Chief Commissioner Of Income Tax, the CIC had allowed a similar request earlier. Therefore, by applying the same yardsticks, the appellant (husband) in the present case was also held to be entitled to such information, the CIC held..The appellant had filed an RTI application on October 10, 2022 seeking details of the gross and net income of his wife.On February 2, 2023, the CPIO denied the information citing the restrictions under Section 8(1)(j) of the Right to Information Act (RTI Act).On February 16, the appellant filed his first appeal. However, this appeal was also rejected, citing the Supreme Court's decision in Girish Ramchandra Deshpande Vs Central Information Commission & Ors. Aggrieved, the appellant moved the CIC with a second appeal..The appellant stated that he had sought the income related details of his estranged wife to corroborate evidence in an ongoing maintenance case filed against him. The information was wrongly denied to him under the garb of Section 8(1)(j) of RTI Act, he contended.The CPIO countered that since the information sought was personal information of a third party, it was denied to him by invoking Section 8(1)(j) of RTI Act. The appellant's wife stated that since such records had already been produced before the civil court in the course of the maintenance case, seeking the information through an RTI application would not serve any public interest..The CIC acknowledged that the Delhi High Court in Vijay Prakash vs. Union of India has observed that in private disputes such as one between a husband and wife, the basic protection afforded by section 8(1)(j) cannot be lifted or disturbed.Further, it noted that in Madhumala B. R. vs. ACIT, Ward 3(3)(1), Bangalore, based on the same facts, the information was denied to the appellant as orders of the Information Commission to furnish such information were temporarily stayed by Karnataka High Court..However, the CIC proceeded to point out that in the Rahmat Bano case, the disclosure of a man's gross income was allowed to his estranged wife.In the Rahmat Bano case, the CIC had taken into account decisions rendered by the Madhya Pradesh High Court and the Bombay High Court, it was observed.The Madhya Pradesh High Court, in a 2018 ruling, had held that while dealing with the Section 8(1)(j) of RTI Act, one cannot lose sight of the fact that the parties are husband and wife and that a wife would be entitled to know what remuneration her husband was getting.The Bombay High Court, in the same year, ruled that in litigation where the issue involved was the maintenance of a wife, the information relating to the salary details no longer remained confined to the category of personal information..Applying these rulings to the present case, the CIC proceeded to direct the CPIO to provide the “generic details of the net taxable income or gross income” of the appellant’s wife to the appellant (husband) within 15 days from the date of receipt of the order..[Read Order]