Dr Raja Muzaffar Bhat
On April 24, 2012 the full bench of Jammu & Kashmir State Information Commission (SIC) headed by Chief Information Commissioner (CIC) G R Sufi in its landmark judgment declared Jammu & Kashmir Bank (J&K Bank) a “Public Authority” and directed the bank to designate Public Information Officer (PIO) who would provide information to citizens of State intending to seek the same under State Right to Information Act (RTI) . Earlier J&K Bank had denied to provide information to several information seekers under Jammu & Kashmir Right to Information Act 2009 (J&K RTI Act 2009) and the reason which was cited by the bank authorities for denial of information was that Jammu & Kashmir Bank is not a “Public Authority “. The section 2 (i) of J&K RTI Act 2009 says that RTI law is applicable to Public Authorities. Section 2 (i) of the act reads as “Right to Information means the right to information Accessible under the Act which is held by or under control of any Public Authority.” This clearly indicates that RTI applies to Public Authorities. We usually think that RTI Act is applicable only to the Government departments, but this is not correct . The definition of “Public Authority” is mentioned in Section 2 (f) of J&K RTI Act 2009 and the act never says that Public Authority only means Government institutions, Semi Government organizations or Public Sector Undertakings (PSU’s), even Private educational institutions and Non Government Organisations (NGO’s) can also be Public Authorities if they are substantially financed by the Government.
Definition of Public Authority?
Under J&K RTI Act 2009 a Public Authority is defined as any authority or body or institution of self Government established or constituted:
I) By or under the constitution of India or the constitution of Jammu & Kashmir
II) By any other law made by Parliament
III) By any other law made by State legislature
IV) By notification issued or order made by the Government and includes any (A) Body owned, controlled or substantially financed (B) Non Government Organisation substantially financed, directly or indirectly by funds provided the Government.
The Central RTI Act of 2005 also has the same definition vis a vis Public Authority.
J&K Bank is a Public Authority ?
We should know that J&K Bank was established by a notification/memorandum issued by the then Government of J&K lead by Maharaja Hari Singh. During the case hearing before the full bench of State Information Commission (SIC) , counsel of J&K Bank admitted the fact later on the plea that after the enactment of Companies Act, 1956, the said Bank was registered as Government Company and hence it owes its existence to the Companies Act, 1956. The stand is not based on facts. The Bank would not have come into existence had by notification not been issued the Maharaja Hari Singh during late 1930’s . As the Bank came into existence because of efforts of Maharaja’s Government during 1939 in pursuance of the memorandum issued by Finance and Development Ministry of the erstwhile State of Jammu & Kashmir, it clearly indicates that the Jammu and Kashmir Bank is a body established by a notification in the form of memorandum issued by the then State Government of Jammu and Kashmir. Jammu & Kashmir Government owns 53 % shares of J&K Bank and the bank ceases to be corporation as on date. The Chairperson of J&K Bank is appointed / removed on the recommendation of State Government and this clearly indicates that J&K Government has a controlling power over the bank.
Delhi High Court order :
Few months back the Delhi High Court in its historical order declared that Public sector banks should disclose details of cases pertaining to persons and establishments whose bad debts of over Rs 100 crore have been written off. This disclosure involves an element of public interest and tax payers have a right to know the manner in which state- run banks sanctioned them, Justice Rajiv Shakdher of Delhi High Court said in his order. The court’s order came on a plea filed by the State Bank of India against a January 20 order of the Central Information Commission (CIC) asking the bank to supply information to RTI applicant namely Raju Vazhakkala . The applicant had sought information regarding total Non- Performing Assets (NPAs) written off between 2004 and 2013.
The bank had contended that it has a fiduciary relationship with the account holders and the information should be exempted from disclosure under Section 8(1)(e) of the central RTI Act 2005. The judge brushed aside the SBI’s contention and observed that the reason “I have come to this prima facie conclusion is this: the petitioner (SBI) is undoubtedly a nationalised bank which on its own is showing written off as NPAs, its loan accounts having outstanding of Rs 100 crore or more.
“The sheer extent of the write-off would, in my view, perhaps, inject an element of public interest in the matter, which is the exception provided for in Section 8(1)(e) of the RTI Act, 2005,” the court added. It also said this “matter needs further examination” and issued notice to Vazhakkala, a resident of Kochi in Kerala. The Central Information Commission (CIC) had earlier directed the SBI to provide the names, address of the individuals and establishments and amounts against them which were written off.
Conclusion :
After State Information Commission (SIC) declared J&K Bank public authority in 2012 , the J&K Bank got a stay order from the Jammu & Kashmir High Court . The matter is still pending before High Court and we are hopeful justice will be delivered . Few days back in a similar Public Interest Litigation (PIL) case filed before J&K High Court at Srinagar , the J&K Bank told the division bench of High Court that it is not at all financed by the State Government, as such it is not obliged under the RTI Act to nominate the Public Information Officer (PIO) or to provide information to RTI applicants. Hearing the petition, a division bench of Justice Muhammad Yaqoob Mir and Justice Ali Muhammad Magrey, however, directed the other respondents to file objections to the petition by November 23. On April 1 this year, the High Court had issued notice to the State Government through Chief Secretary, State Information Commission through its Secretary, Registrar General of the High Court and Chairman Jammu and Kashmir Bank seeking their response within three weeks. It is the people of J&K who have established Jammu Kashmir Bank . With the huge sum of money deposited in J&K Bank , the bank is doing business worth billions every year , but when the same citizens demand information from this bank , they say No ? What a sad state of affairs ? Why should not people of State be informed about the way J&K Bank makes it recruitments ? Why cannot we know the details of people having been given crores of rupees as loans but have become defaulters and no action is taken against the same ?
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