Private engineering college a public authority, must give info, says KIC

 Here’s an order that can set a precedent for cases involving private universities, engineering and medical colleges, which have been refusing to furnish information under the Right to Information (RTI) Act.

Over the years a number of such cases have been caught in legal wrangles before various courts, including the Karnataka High Court. The recent order by the Karnataka Information Commission (KIC) has, however, brought reprieve to an RTI applicant. 

He was denied information by the Sri Dharamasthala Manjunatheshwara College of Engineering and Technology (SDMCET), Dharwad, for the last three years. The college had argued that it is not a ‘public authority’ and hence was not bound to furnish information under the RTI Act.

The KIC on September 7 passed an order declaring SDMCET as a public authority, thereby making it legally liable to provide information under the Act.

The case dates back to September 2013, when P B Joshi of Dharwad sought information pertaining to nine faculty members whose names were recommended by the college for assistance under Technical Education Quality Improvement Programme (TEQIP) Phase 2. 

The said faculty members are among the 26 faculty of the college, with PhD in the engineering discipline. Joshi had sought certified copies of the joining date of service of the faculty, the attendance registers from January 2012 and the salary components of the faculty.

He had filed for information through the Directorate of Technical Education, Bengaluru. But the Directorate’s public information officer (joint director) and the first information officer (director) had pleaded before the KIC that the college was refusing to provide the information.

The advocate representing SDMCET had argued that the case pertaining to considering engineering colleges as ‘public authorities’, was still pending before the High Court, while the Supreme Court had held that institutions financed by the government do not fall within the definition of public authority. 

The SDMCET principal S B Vanakudre too reiterated the same in September 2015. After much deliberation, the KIC noted that the college was receiving financial assistance from both the Union and the state governments, and ordered that it was bound to furnish information under the Section 7(1) of the Act. 

It has appointed Vanakundre as the public information officer and has directed him to provide the information within the next 30 days.