Delhi High Court Upholds Confidentiality Of Solicitor General's Advice Under RTI Act

In a recent ruling, the Delhi High Court has affirmed that legal advice provided by the Solicitor General of India (SG) to the government is exempt from disclosure under Section 8(1)(e) of the Right to Information (RTI) Act of 2005. Justice Subramonium Prasad, in a single-judge bench, emphasized the SG's duty to work in the best interest of the central government and other departments in good faith.

The court's decision overturned a December 5, 2011 order by the Central Information Commissioner (CIC) in response to a case filed by Subhash Chandra Agrawal. The CIC had directed the Central Public Information Officer (CPIO) of the Union Ministry of Law and Justice to provide a copy of the 2007 note/opinion from the then Solicitor General to the Department of Telecommunications.

The central government challenged the CIC order, arguing that Agrawal failed to establish the public interest in obtaining details of the Solicitor General's advice. The court concurred, stating, "The petitioner has not been able to demonstrate as to what is the public interest that would be subserved to invoke the provisions of Section 8(2) of the RTI Act. In the absence of any public interest, the information sought by the respondent, which is exempted under Section 8(1) of the RTI Act, this court is not inclined to invoke the provisions of Section 8(2) of RTI Act.”

Author: Anushka Taraniya

News Writer, MIT ADT University