Delhi HC stays order directing IAF to provide info on PM’s foreign visits
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“Why should that be disclosed? At best, you will get the numbers,” Justice Navin Chawla tells activist
The Delhi High Court on Friday stayed a Central Information Commission (CIC) route to Indian Air Force (IAF) to provide an RTI activist data relating to every foreign go to of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh undertaken on IAF plane.
Justice Navin Chawla additionally sought a response from the RTI activist, Commodore (retired) Lokesh K. Batra, who had requested licensed copies of Special Flight Returns Part-I and Part-II relating to foreign visits of Mr. Modi and Dr. Singh undertaken on IAF plane from April 1, 2013 onwards.
The IAF had moved the High Court difficult the July 8, 2020, order of the CIC, saying that the data sought was “extremely sensitive in nature” because it associated to particulars of the Prime Minister’s safety equipment.
“The information so sought includes details related to the entire entourage, names of Special Protection Group (SPG) personnel accompanying the Prime Minister of India on foreign tours for his personal safety, and the same, if disclosed, can potentially affect the sovereignty and integrity of India, the security, strategic, scientific or economic interests of the State,” the IAF mentioned.
Advocate Rahul Sharma, representing the IAF, argued that Part-I info on particulars of flights had been supplied to the RTI activist. However, Part-II had particulars of variety of passengers and their names.
“Once this info under severability clause is given, it would be detrimental. The security apparatus would be exposed,” Mr. Sharma mentioned.
Justice Chawla famous that the small print sought had been sought of not solely passengers, together with the SPG personnel, but additionally officers of the federal government accompanying the Prime Minister. “Why should that be disclosed? At best, you [Mr. Batra] will get the numbers,” he remarked.
The High Court gave 4 weeks’ time to Mr. Batra to reply to the IAF’s plea.
In its plea, the IAF mentioned that the CIC made “grave error in law as well as on facts as it ignored that the details of the SPG are explicitly exempted from the purview of the RTI Act, 2005”.
Additionally, Part-II incorporates particulars of the passengers together with names, designations and organisation particulars of passengers accompanying the Prime Minister, together with the safety personnel.
“Such information can be strategically/tactically advantageous to our adversary and jeopardise VVIP/VIP security issues,” the IAF mentioned.
