A three-judge bench said the right to know the facts of the administration of the country is one of the pillars of a democratic state.
Observing that democracy expects openness and transparency, the Delhi High Court today hailed the Right to Information Act as "the most significant event of Indian Democracy".
"After almost 55 years since the coming into force of the Constitution of India, a national law providing for the right to information was passed by both Houses of Parliament on 12/13th May, 2005. It is undoubtedly the most significant event in the life of Indian Democracy," a full bench headed by chief justice A P Shah said, while holding that the office of CJI comes within the ambit of the transparency law.
"Democracy expects openness and openness is concomitant of free society. Sunlight is the best disinfectant," the court said.
Giving a wider interpretation to the law, the court said that right to information was part of fundamental rights enshrined in Articles 14 (right to equality), 19(1)(a)(freedom of speech) and 21 (right to life) of the Constitution.
"In construing such a statute, the Court ought to give to it the widest operation which its language will permit. The Court will also not readily read words which are not there and introduction of which will restrict the rights of citizens for whose benefit the statute is intended," it said.
The bench, also comprising Justices Vikramajit Sen and S Muralidhar, said that right to know the facts about the administration of the country is thus one of the pillars of a democratic State.
"Information is currency that every citizen requires to participate in the life and governance of the society. In any democratic polity, greater the access, greater will be the responsiveness and greater the restrictions, greater the feeling of powerlessness and alienation," the court said.
Today's verdict came on an appeal filed by the apex court which challenged the order of a single judge of the high court on September 2 holding that the CJI is a public authority and his office came within the purview of the RTI Act.
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