RTI will be trivialised if such large scale breaches are not controlled: Bombay High Court in Saket Gokhale verdict

Taking serious note of the Centre's lapse in revealing the personal details of over 4,000 RTI Applicants on the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) website, despite official directives not to so, the Bombay High Court on Thursday observed,"This could defeat the object of the (RTI) Act. If such a large scale breaches in the field of Right to Information are not taken seriously, the right itself will be trivialized. Suitable action must be taken, and also seen to be taken, to underscore the importance of the Act of 2005.".The Court was made the observation while ordering an inquiry on the issue while disposing of a plea moved by activist and RTI applicant, Saket Gokhale to remove his personal data from the MIB website. .Bombay High Court orders I&B Ministry inquiry into disclosure of personal data of RTI applicants on website.Gokhale had approached the Court raising concerns that the disclosure of his personal data online, which was gained by the Ministry through his RTI application, may have been accesses by antisocial elements that were threatening and harassing him..The Bench of Justices Nitin Jamdar and Milind Jadhav expressed in their judgment that the issue brought to their attention by Gokhale “travelled beyond the individual breach of the privacy of the applicant and potential likelihood of a risk.”."It is the impact on future applicants. Informed citizenry and transparency of information are vital for the functioning of democracy. Noticing that personal details of other applicants are put up in the public domain, some of those who want to seek information for the larger good may be deterred for the fear of being targeted."Bombay High Court.The Bench held that suitable action ought to be taken to preseve the sanctity and importance of the Right to Information Act..In the course of the case, the MIB tendered an apology through an Affidavit, adding that action had been taken against the concerned personnel from the Ministry and that such an error would not be repeated. However, the Court expressed its dissatisfaction at the timing and manner of furnishing said an Affidavit..The Bench was appalled to find that despite an office memorandum of 2016, for four years, 4,474 applications with personal details of the RTI applicants were uploaded on the website of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting..Bombay High Court voices concern after MIB admits that personal details of 4,474 RTI applicants were uploaded online."Uploading the personal details of the applicants is … not only unnecessary, but it may also make some of the applicants vulnerable to unscrupulous elements ... Looking at the magnitude of the lapse, it cannot be treated as just a routine internal matter."the Court remarked.All the same, the Court refrained from imposing damages in the case, adding that Gokhale has the remedy of approaching a civil court to claim damages from the Government. In this regard, the High Court also observed, ."Courts grant damages in public law more in the cases of the poor and downtrodden who may not have the means to enforce their rights in private law. The law of damages requires various parameters to be evaluated. Grant of damages require factual adjudication such as to the quantum.".However, the Ministry was directed to pay Rs 25,000 for the expenses incurred by Gokhale for filing and prosecuting his petition, without prejudice to his rights to claim appropriate damages in the civil court. .The Court further directed the Secretary of the MIB to begin an enquiry in within 2 weeks into the uploading of personal details of RTI applicants..The Secretary was granted 3 months to complete his investigation and 2 weeks thereafter to submit the report with the Court registry. Gokhale was granted liberty to move an application before the Court if the Ministry failed on this count. .[Read order]