Page No.# 1/3 GAHC010278152025 2026:GAU-AS:259 THE GAUHATI HIGH COURT (HIGH COURT OF ASSAM, NAGALAND, MIZORAM AND ARUNACHAL PRADESH) Case No. : WP(C)/19/2026 SUBHASH KUMAR S/O SURESH KUMAR, R/O GUWAHATI, CHABIPUL, SATI JAYMATI ROAD, HARIJAN COLONY, DIST - KAMRUP (M), ASSAM-781008 VERSUS PUNJAB NATIONAL BANK AND 4 ORS A COMPANY WHOLLY OWNED BY THE GOVT. OF INDIA AND HAVING ITS REGISTERED OFFICE AT PUNJAB NATIONAL BANK, HEAD OFFICE, PLOT NO.4, SECTOR 10, DWARKA, NEW DELHI-110075, THROUGH ITS CHAIRMAN. 2:CHIEF GENERAL MANAGER HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT DIVISION PUNJAB NATIONAL BANK PLOT NO.4 SECTOR 10 DWARKA H.O. NEW DELHI- 110075 3:THE CENTRAL PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER RIGHT TO INFORMATION CELL (LAW DIVISION) 3RD FLOOR EAST WING (A) PLOT NO. 4 SECTOR 10 DWARKA H.O. NEW DELHI- 110075. 4:THE CENTRAL PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER PUNJAB NATIONAL BANK Page No.# 2/3 ZONAL OFFICE GUWAHATI HEM BARUA ROAD PANBAZAR GUWAHATI- 781001 5:THE CENTRAL PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER PUNJAB NATIONAL BANK CIRCLE OFFICE NILGIRI MANSION G.S ROAD. BHANGAGARH GUWAHATI ASSAM PIN - 78100 For the petitioner(s): Mr. Subhash Kumar, the Petitioner-in-Person Advocate for the respondent(s): Mr. A Ganguly, Standing Counsel, PNB B E F O R E HON’BLE MR. JUSTICE DEVASHIS BARUAH ORDER 07.01.2026 Heard Mr. Subhash Kumar, the petitioner-in-person and Mr. A Ganguly, the learned Standing Counsel, PNB. 2. The instant writ petition has been filed by the petitioner seeking a direction upon the respondents to provide the certified copies of all documents requested by the petitioner in the application dated 19.08.2025. The said application dated 19.08.2025 is Annexure-A-1 to the writ petition. The certified copies of the documents what the petitioner-in-person has sought for is at Annexure-1 to the said application dated 19.08.2025. The information and the documents so mentioned out at Annexure-1, under no circumstance, comes within the definition of ‘Public Document’ as defined under Section 74 of the Bharatiya Page No.# 3/3 Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 (for short, the BSA, 2023). 3. It is further seen that in pursuance to the said communication, a reply was also sent to the petitioner on 27.10.2025 informing that no action is warranted in the application filed by him on 19.08.2025 as Section 75 of the BSA, 2023 pertains to judicial records that forms part of the judicial proceedings before a Court. 4. Be that as it may, it is pertinent to mention that as the documents which have been sought for at Annexure-1 to the application dated 19.08.2025 do not fall within the ambit of ‘Public Document’ as defined under Section 75 of the BSA, 2023, the very application so filed by the petitioner on 19.08.2025 is totally misconceived. 5. This Court also takes note of from the materials on record that the petitioner has approached the respondents again under the Right to Information Act, 2005 and in pursuance thereto, the petitioner has been provided various replies. 6. This Court further takes note of Section 19 of the Right to Information Act, 2005, which categorically mentions that if a person is aggrieved by the information being not provided, an appeal lies and the petitioner instead of filing an appeal has approached this Court. The petitioner, therefore, has an alternative and efficacious remedy. 7. This Court, therefore, does not find it a fit case to be entertained. Accordingly, the writ petition stands dismissed. JUDGE Comparing Assistant