Central Information Commission in Complaint Case No. CIC/AT/C/2007/00399 on 29th April, 2008 passed the Order, after recording the decision interalia that "The complainant herein has cited public interest as the reason for disclosing this information now in the hands of the income tax authorities." and directed to the Income Tax Department, Kolkata, that "In the Commission’s view, it is a matter in which the third-parties should be consulted under Section 11(1) of RTI Act before a decision is made about whether or not to disclose the information. Some of the material which the complainant produced before the Commission in support of his claim that there was a public purpose which warranted invoking the public-purpose-override under Section 8(2) of the RTI Act was not produced before the Appellate Authority when the latter made his decision dated 06.08.2007." My point is that Section 11(1) clearly provides following provision: "Where a Central Public Information Officer or a State Public Information Officer, as the case may be, intends to disclose any information or record, or part thereof on a request made under this Act, which relates to or has been supplied by a third party and has been treated as confidential by that third party, the Central Public Information Officer or State Public Information Officer, as the case may be, shall, within five days from the receipt of the request, give a written notice to such third party of the request and of the fact that the Central Public Information Officer or State Public Information Officer, as the case may be, intends to disclose the information or record, or part thereof, and invite the third party to make a submission in writing or orally, regarding whether the information should be disclosed, and such submission of the third party shall be kept in view while taking a decision about disclosure of information." My opinion is that direction for invoking of Section 11(1) of the RTI Act, should have been issued only when Information is supplied by third party and has been treated as “confidential by that third party,". In fact in the aforesaid matter, on the strength of my Complaint against violation of Section 269UC of the Income Tax Act, enquiry was conducted by the Income Tax Department, Kolkata. During the enquiry, the document were collected by Income Tax Department, (which are subject matter of my application under RTI Act), not supplied third party. Hence, respective "Third Party" had no scope to "tag" upon any document collected by Income Tax Department at the time enquiry as "Confidential". 

Milap Choraria