SBI Cards under RTI net: Delhi HC
Delhi HC stays the Central Information Commission order on SBI Cards maintaining customers can seek any information under the RTI Act.
By PTI |
NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court on Wednesday stayed the Central Information Commission order which had held that SBI Cards, a joint venture between SBI and GE, is a "public authority" and hence customers can seek any information about the entity under the Right to Information Act.
Justice S Ravinder Bhatt passed the interim stay order on a petition filed by the SBI Cards and Payments Services Pvt Ltd challenging Commission's order.
Counsel for SBI Cards Abhinav Vashistha submitted before the bench that the Commission passed the order without giving any opportunity to it.
The court also issued notices to the Reserve Bank and the two SBI Card customers Arun Kumar Verma and Dileep Ayachit on whose applications CIC had passed the ruling.
During the course of hearing, counsels of both parties apprised the court that similar petitions were pending in the High Court, filed by different entities like BSES, IGL, DERC, Kribhco, Association of Indian Universities challenging CIC's order which brought them under RTI purview and all these matters are scheduled for hearing on November 23 and 27.
The court tagged SBI Cards' petition along with the aforesaid petitions and would now be heard on November 23.
Earlier in the first week of September, the Commission, while disposing of separate applications by SBI Cards customers Arun Kumar Verma and Dileep Ayachit, had directed the SBI to take a decision on setting up a proper information redressal mechanism within 15 days.
It had given SBI the option to either designate its own officers for providing information about SBI Cards or set up a separate mechanism within the subsidiary to provide information under the provisions of the RTI Act.
Justice S Ravinder Bhatt passed the interim stay order on a petition filed by the SBI Cards and Payments Services Pvt Ltd challenging Commission's order.
Counsel for SBI Cards Abhinav Vashistha submitted before the bench that the Commission passed the order without giving any opportunity to it.
The court also issued notices to the Reserve Bank and the two SBI Card customers Arun Kumar Verma and Dileep Ayachit on whose applications CIC had passed the ruling.
During the course of hearing, counsels of both parties apprised the court that similar petitions were pending in the High Court, filed by different entities like BSES, IGL, DERC, Kribhco, Association of Indian Universities challenging CIC's order which brought them under RTI purview and all these matters are scheduled for hearing on November 23 and 27.
The court tagged SBI Cards' petition along with the aforesaid petitions and would now be heard on November 23.
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Earlier in the first week of September, the Commission, while disposing of separate applications by SBI Cards customers Arun Kumar Verma and Dileep Ayachit, had directed the SBI to take a decision on setting up a proper information redressal mechanism within 15 days.
It had given SBI the option to either designate its own officers for providing information about SBI Cards or set up a separate mechanism within the subsidiary to provide information under the provisions of the RTI Act.
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