- 1 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:32143 WP No. 17635 of 2017 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU DATED THIS THE 19TH DAY OF AUGUST, 2025 BEFORE THE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE R. NATARAJ WRIT PETITION NO. 17635 OF 2017 (GM-RES) BETWEEN: THE SECRETARY SHRI YADUSHAILA EDUCATION SOCIETY (R) MELUKOTE, PANDAVAPURA TALUK, MANDYA DISTRICT - 571434 REPRESENTED BY ITS SECRETARY SRI K. NARASIMHE GOWDA …PETITIONER (BY SRI. GOVINDARAJ K., ADVOCATE) AND: 1. THE KARNATAKA INFORMATION COMMISSION, COURT NO.6, GATE NO-14/3, 1ST FLOOR, SRI ARAVINDA BHAVANA, MITHIC SOCIETY, NRUPATHUNGA ROAD, BANGALORE - 560001 2. FIRST APPELLATE AUTHORITY AND BLOCK EDUCATION OFFICER PANDAVAPURA TALUK, MANDYA DISTRICT-571434. 3. SRI. M. MARIAPPA RETIRED HEAD TEACHER, NO.241, TIRUNAKSHATRA BEEDI, MELUKOTE, PANDAVAPURA TALUK, MANDYA DISTRICT – 571431 …RESPONDENTS (BY SMT. MEGNA SUNIL, ADVOCATE FOR SRI. G.B.SHARATH GOWDA, ADVOCATE FOR RESPONDENT NO.1; SRI. GANAPATHI, ADVOCATE FOR RESPONDENT NO.3; NOTICE IS SERVED ON RESPONDENT NO.2 AND UNREPRESENTED) Digitally signed by SUMA Location: HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA - 2 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:32143 WP No. 17635 of 2017 THIS WP IS FILED UNDER ARTICLES 226 AND 227 OF THE CONSTITUTION OF INDIA PRAYING TO QUASH THE ORDERS IN NO.KA MA AA 4796 APL 2014, KA MA AA 4797 APL 2014 AND KA MA AA 4798 APL 2014 PASSED BY FIRST RESPONDENT DATED 08.03.2017 AT ANNEXURES-J, K AND L RESPECTIVELY AND ETC. THIS PETITION, COMING ON FOR HEARING, THIS DAY, ORDER WAS MADE THEREIN AS UNDER: CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE R. NATARAJ ORAL ORDER The petitioner has challenged the orders bearing Nos. PÀªÀiÁD 4796 J¦J¯ï 2014, PÀªÀiÁD 4797 J¦J¯ï 2014 and PÀªÀiÁD 4798 J¦J¯ï 2014 passed by the respondent No.1 of even date i.e. 08.03.2017 remitting the case back to the respondent No.2 for consideration. He has also sought for a writ of certiorari to quash the communication bearing No.¹4/178/ªÀiÁ.ºÀ.ªÉÄîä£À«/09/2017-18/95 dated 06.05.2017 issued by the respondent No.2 as per Annexure ‘M’ to the petition. 2. The petitioner is a Secretary of an Institution, named, Shri Yadushaila Education Society (R) (for short, ‘the Society’) and is running a School, namely, Sri Yadushaila High School, Melukote, (henceforth referred to as the ‘School’ / - 3 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:32143 WP No. 17635 of 2017 ‘Institution’) which is granted aid by the State Government. The respondent No.3 submitted a request to the petitioner on 19.09.2013 seeking certain information. However, the petitioner informed the respondent No.3 that he is not the authority notified for the purpose of furnishing information. Thereafter, the respondent No.3 aggrieved by the petitioner not furnishing information, approached the respondent No.2 by way of filing three representations. Respondent No.2 purportedly informed the respondent No.3 that if the petitioner had not furnished any information, he may approach the respondent No.1. Later, the respondent No.1 issued notice to the petitioner on the appeals filed by the respondent No.3. The petitioner appeared before the respondent No.1 and filed objections primarily contending that the Society is not a ‘public authority’ and therefore, the provisions of the Right to Information Act, 2005 (for short, ‘the RTI Act’) are not applicable. He also contended that the information sought for related to issues that had taken place 20 years before the date on which request was made and hence, the petitioner was exempted from furnishing such information under Section 8(3) of the RTI Act. The respondent No.1 after considering the - 4 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:32143 WP No. 17635 of 2017 objections as well as the contentions urged in the appeals, allowed the appeals and directed the respondent No.3 to file a first appeal and remitted the case back to the respondent No.2. 3. Being aggrieved by the said orders, the petitioner has approached this Court. 4. The respondent No.3 has filed statement of objections inter alia stating that the petitioner Society is running the High School and it is an aided Institution. The Government is providing salary to teaching and non-teaching staff. Therefore, the petitioner Society is a ‘public authority’ as defined under clause (h) of Section of the RTI Act. It is further stated that the petitioner has not granted the annual increment and time bound advance increments to the employees of the High School and is in the regular habit of stopping payment of monthly salary to Teachers and other employees. He has made several applications to petitioner seeking information. However, the same is not provided by the petitioner. He contends that the State Government framed the Rules called the Karnataka Educational Institutions (Powers and Functions of Managing Committee and powers and duties of Secretary) - 5 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:32143 WP No. 17635 of 2017 Rules, 2007 and according to clauses (iii) and (iv) and sub-rule (2) of Rule 4 of the said Rules, the Secretary is the custodian of all the records of the Education Society. It is further stated that the Department of Education had issued the notification dated 20.02.2016 and appointed the Public Relation Officer and the First Appellate Authority in the Education Department only. As per the said notification, the Headmaster is the Public Relation Officer in respect of accounts and statistics maintained by him in respect of pay scale of teachers, students’ information, strength of the students in the School etc. In the present case, the information sought by him is in the custody of the Secretary of the School run by the Society, which is registered under the Karnataka Societies Registration Act, 1960 and of which the District Registrar of the Societies is the Controlling Authority. He contends that the said notification issued by the Department of Education is not applicable in the present case. He further stated that the present Secretary is holding the post without conducting the General Body meeting and without conducting the election. Therefore, he filed W.P No.4272/2015 before this Court seeking appointment of an Administrator to the petitioner – Society. He has further stated - 6 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:32143 WP No. 17635 of 2017 that he is a senior citizen and the documents sought by the respondent No.3 are not exempted from the disclosure under the RTI Act. 5. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that in respect of aided Institutions, the Headmaster of the School is the Public Information Officer as per the notification bearing No. ED 17 PDB 2015 dated 20.02.2016 issued by the State Government. He, therefore, contends that the petitioner was not a proper party in the proceedings before the respondent No.1 as well as the first appeal which is now to be considered by the respondent No.2. He, therefore, contends that the impugned orders are liable to be set aside. 6. Per contra, the learned counsel for respondent No.1 submits that the petitioner was bound to notify in a prominent manner that the Headmaster of the School was the Public Information Officer. Since he did not notify the same, the respondent No.3 bona fide believed that it was the petitioner who was the Public Information officer. He contends that the petitioner also did not bring to the notice of the respondent No.1 that he was not the Public Information Officer and - 7 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:32143 WP No. 17635 of 2017 therefore, the petitioner cannot be now permitted to take up the contention that he is not the Public Information Officer. 7. I have considered the submissions of the learned counsel for the petitioner and the learned counsel for respondent No.1. 8. The respondent No.2 had sought information from the educational Institution, namely, Sri Yadushaila High School run by Shri Yadushaila Education Society (R). The said High School was an Institution admitted to grant-in-aid by the State Government and was therefore, a “public authority” as defined under Section 2(h) of the RTI Act. Under Section 4 of the RTI Act, it was incumbent upon every public authority to publish the names, designations and other particulars of the Public Information Officers within 120 days from the date of the enactment of the said Act. The petitioner who was the Secretary of the Society was, therefore, bound to publish that it was the Headmaster of the School who was the Public Information Officer based on the notification issued by the State Government bearing No.ED 17 PDP 2015 dated 20.02.2016. The petitioner herein did not even raise this - 8 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:32143 WP No. 17635 of 2017 contention before the respondent No.1 but allowed the respondent No.1 to consider the appeals and remit the matter back to the respondent No.2 for reconsideration. Therefore, the petitioner was complacent and was guilty of unnecessarily compelling the respondent No.3 to go from pillar to post seeking for information that he was lawfully entitled to. Therefore, the petitioner is liable to compensate for the loss of time, money and energy spent by the respondent No.3. Nonetheless, it is evident from the notification published by the State Government referred supra that in respect of an aided Institution, it is the Headmaster of the School who is the Public Information Officer and therefore, the respondent No.1 was bound to take necessary steps to implead the concerned Public Information Officer rather than proceeding against an unconcerned person, who had no obligation under the RTI Act to furnish information. In that view of the matter, this writ petition deserves to be disposed off on the following terms: i. The Writ Petition is allowed in part subject to payment of cost of Rs. 5000/- (Rupees Five Thousand) to the Respondent No.3. - 9 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:32143 WP No. 17635 of 2017 ii. The respondent Nos.1 and 2 are directed to replace the respondents before them by the Headmaster of Sri Yadushaila High School, Melukote, run by Shri Yadushaila Education Society (R), Melukote, Pandavapura Taluk, Mandya District and take further steps to ensure that the required information is furnished to the respondent No.3 herein, unless they are exempted in law. In view of disposal of this petition, I.A. Nos.3/2017 and 4/2017 do not survive for consideration and the same stand disposed off. Sd/- (R. NATARAJ) JUDGE SMA List No.: 1 Sl No.: 39