In a move that could bring in greater transparency in functioning of bourses, Central Information Commission (CIC) has brought the country’s stock exchanges under the purview of Right to Information Act.
Disposing two different applications filed against two stock exchanges, the CIC directed all the bourses in the country to comply to RTI rules within three months. It also directed the Jaipur Stock Exchange  and National Stock Exchange, against which the applications were filed, to put in place a RTI regime within one month. “The commission holds that a stock exchange being a quasi governmental body working under the statute and exercising statutory powers has to be held a ‘public authority’ within the meaning of RTI Act,” the bench said. Terming the government’s control over the functioning of stock exchanges as “pervasive”, the commission in its order said bourses can not be exempted from sharing information under the provisions of the Act. “A stock exchange starts its function only after recognition and even while so functioning remains under the implicit control of government through Sebi, which has to be categorised as pervasive,” the bench said.