Conciliation proceedings in marital discord personal information: CIC

NEW DELHI: The conciliation proceedings between estranged couples cannot be disclosed under the Right to Information Act as it attracts exemption clauses of fiduciary capacity as well as personal information, CIC has said.

The case is related to one Rama Aggarwal who sought to know details of her conciliation proceedings before Delhi Legal Aid Society. She had claimed that she was married in 1983 and had discord with the spouse.

She alleged that she was confined in a private mental asylum and now referred to counselling under Delhi State Legal Services Authority. She said she needs these details to pursue the on going divorce case.

"The Commission having perused the file found that the file is a proceeding for counselling, a prelude to or part of conciliation. The conciliation in general will include the counselling also. The mediator or conciliator will advise or guide or apprise the parties of the issues or steps that help resolving the dispute," Information Commissioner Sridhar Acharyulu said.

He said when there is a counselling between a person and counsellor, there emerges fiduciary relationship.

"The appellant has already filed a case for domestic violence. She had claimed that proceeding before legal service authority was in the nature of divorce proceeding. From the nature of proceedings it is apparently clear that it was not divorce proceeding, but a counselling and conciliation proceeding," he said.

Acharyulu said confidentiality of this process needs to be protected as per the law and in public interest.

"Information regarding negotiation, mediation, conciliation and counselling will fall under exempted clause of information given in fiduciary capacity and also private/personal information of her spouse and hence shall not be disclosed," he said.