Can House panel details be disclosed?

**sidmis** · 07-01-2008, 06:41 AM

Can House panel details be disclosed?

As Reported by by Himanshi Dhawan, Times of India, 1 Jul 2008, 0235 hrs IST, ,TNN

NEW DELHI: The Central Information Commission (CIC) will examine whether evidences and proceedings of parliamentary committees and state legislatures can be disclosed under the Right to Information (RTI) Act.

The issue — based on a query by Goa's leader of Opposition and BJP MLA Manohar Parrikar — will be heard by a full CIC Bench.

Lok Sabha secretary general and legal experts on parliamentary privileges have been invited to give written submissions and opinion on the issue that will be heard on August 1. At present, minutes of parliamentary committees and its proceedings are confidential and disclosure can invite contempt of the House.

The CIC has issued a public notice to evaluate the matter. The issue has come up at a time when the commission is engaged in a war of words with the department of personnel and training over disclosure of file notings. Despite CIC orders, file notings are being disclosed under RTI sporadically, if at all.

The CIC will consider if disclosure of information under RTI, which has not been submitted or made public, would be violative of the privilege of Parliament or state legislatures. The information could be in the form of draft report, half margins and draft audit notes.

The commission will also establish whether draft audit reports, audit notes and half margins qualify as "evidence" and if "all" evidence before the committees of Parliament or state legislatures is confidential.
Interpretation of section 8(1) (c) of RTI — that addresses exemption from disclosure — will also be looked at.

Can House panel details be disclosed?-India-The Times of India

Similar Threads which you may be interested into:

**sidmis** · 07-31-2008, 08:10 PM

Sponsorer

Proceedings of House panels can't be disclosed under RTI

As Reported in The Hindu, Thursday, July 31, 2008

New Delhi (PTI): The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has
contended before the CIC that information pertaining to proceedings of
Parliamentary and State Legislative Committees cannot be revealed
under the Right to Information Act.

"The privilege of Parliament has not been codified but it is a
practice going on for more than 50 years. It is an unsaid rule that
the information should not be disclosed," Auditor General B B Pandit
said during the full bench hearing of the Commission.

The CIC was hearing the petition filed by BJP leader Manohar Parrikar,
who approached the Commission after being denied information by the
Accountant General, on the ground that it would amount to breach of
parliamentary privilege.

The CAG appeared before the Commission after it was issued notice on
Parrikar's plea of disclosing the information in the form of draft
reports, audit notes and half margins.

The Commission had also issued notices to the Lok Sabha Secretary
General to assist it in hearing the case.

http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/000200807311866.htm