The Madras High Court has ruled that the salary details of High Court judges are liable to disclosure under the Right to Information (RTI) Act, holding that such information cannot be withheld under the exemption provisions of the statute since judges are paid from the Consolidated Fund of India.
The Bench of Justice M. Dhandapani made the observation while dismissing a writ petition filed by the Registrar General of the Madras High Court challenging an order of the Tamil Nadu Information Commission directing disclosure of information sought by an RTI applicant.
The applicant had sought information relating to the Madras High Court’s Conduct of Proceedings by Party-in-Person Rules, 2019, including the constitution of the Party-in-Person Committee, the qualifications and experience of its members, their pay scales and salary details, and the functions and powers of the Administrative Committee.
Rejecting the contention that the requested information was protected under Section 8 of the RTI Act, the Court held that a substantial part of the information was already available in the public domain and could not be denied on the ground of exemption.
Justice Dhandapani observed that remuneration drawn by judges from the Consolidated Fund of India constitutes public record. As public funds finance these salaries, the public retains a legitimate right to review such expenditure, and no statutory bar under Section 8 of the RTI Act precludes disclosure.
The Court also pointed out that details regarding the qualifications, professional experience and field of practice of judges are already published on the High Court’s official website and, therefore, cannot be treated as confidential. However, it clarified that information relating to the “conduct details” of members of the Party-in-Person Committee need not be furnished, as such records were not maintained by the High Court.
Emphasising the object of the RTI Act, the Court held that merely because information is available in the public domain does not entitle a public authority to refuse disclosure by invoking the exemption clauses under Section 8. At best, the authority may direct the applicant to the source where the information is available.
Upholding the Tamil Nadu Information Commission’s order, the Court directed that all non-exempt information, including the salary details of High Court judges, be disclosed, while permitting the High Court administration to withhold only such information that is not available in its records.
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