2025:JHHC:20478 IN THE HIGH COURT OF JHARKHAND AT RANCHI W.P.(C) No. 2402 of 2025 Arun Kumar Dubey ….. Petitioner Versus 1. The State of Jharkhand 2. Jharkhand State Information Commission, through the Information Commissioner, Ranchi 3. The First Appellate Authority-cum-Superintending Engineer, Road Circle, Road Construction Department, Government of Jharkhand, Ranchi 4. The Public Information Officer-cum-Executive Engineer, Field Survey Division, Advance Planning, Road Construction Department, Government of Jharkhand, Ranchi ….. Respondents ----- CORAM HON’BLE MR. JUSTICE RAJESH SHANKAR ----- For the Petitioner: Mr. Pratyush Shounkya For the State: Ms. Shalini Sahdeo, A.C to S.C (L&C)-I For the JSIC: Mr. Sanjay Piprawall ----- 02/24.07.2025 The grievance of the petitioner raised in the present writ petition is that despite the order as contained in letter No. 724 dated 30.08.2023 (Annexure-6 to the writ petition) as well as the order as contained in memo No. 925 dated 30.11.2023 (Annexure-10 to the writ petition) passed by the First Appellate Authority i.e. the respondent no.3 under the Right to Information Act, 2005 [hereinafter referred to as ‘the Act, 2005’], the Public Information Officer i.e. the respondent No.4 has not provided correct and full information as sought by the petitioner under the provisions of the Act, 2005. The petitioner has also prayed for payment of compensation under Section 19(8)(b) by the respondent No.3 as well as imposition of penalty of Rs.25,000/- under Section 20(1) of the Act, 2005 upon the respondent No.3. 2. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the present writ petition has been filed primarily due to the reason that the Jharkhand State Information Commission-cum-Second Appellate Authority under the Act, 2005 is non-functional. 3. Having considered the aforesaid prayers made in the present writ petition, this Court is of the view that even if the State Information 2025:JHHC:20478 Commission is non-functional, this Court while exercising the power under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, is not supposed to assume the power as conferred under the statute to the statutory authority i.e. the Jharkhand State Information Commission. Hence, the petitioner’s prayers seeking compensation under Section 19(8)(b) as well as imposition of penalty upon the Public Information Officer under section 20(1) of the Act, 2005 cannot be entertained. 4. So far as the petitioner’s grievance that despite the aforesaid orders of the respondent No.3 i.e. the First Appellate Authority, the respondent No.4 has not provided full and correct information, he is at liberty to approach the First Appellate Authority, who has to ensure that the orders passed by him are duly complied by the respondent No.4. 5. The present writ petition is accordingly disposed of with the aforesaid observation. Satish/- (RAJESH SHANKAR, J)