Kiriti Sen and Ors. Vs the State of West Bengal and Ors. — Calcutta HC (2025) — LawSathi Research

Kiriti Sen and Ors. Vs the State of West Bengal and Ors. — Calcutta HC (2025) — LawSathi Research

What the court decided

AI extract

Outcome

Direction to respondent no.3 and/or SPIO, North 24 Parganas to forthwith supply the informations sought under cover of the letter dated August 23, 2024, unless they fall under Section 8 of the Right to Information Act, 2005; liberty to communicate the server copy of the order to respondent no.3 and the District Magistrate, North 24 Parganas, who were directed to act on the server copy.

Issue for consideration

Whether respondent no.3 should be directed to provide the informations sought pursuant to the writ petitioners' application under Section 6 of the Right to Information Act, 2005 made under cover of the letter dated August 23, 2024.

Court's answer

The Court found that no materials were placed showing that the informations sought had been supplied to the writ petitioners, though the answers to the questions had been called for under Section 6 of the Right to Information Act, 2005.

Ratio / Principle

While disposing of the writ petition, the Court directed respondent no.3 and/or SPIO, North 24 Parganas to provide forthwith the informations sought under cover of the letter dated August 23, 2024, provided they do not fall under the category of Section 8 of the Right to Information Act, 2005.

Detailed headnote1 paragraphs

Writ petition disposed of (order dated 02.04.2025). Although the prayer portion referred to non-consideration of a representation dated August 20, 2024, at hearing the petitioners confined their request to a direction that respondent no.3 supply the informations asked for pursuant to their application under Section 6 of the Right to Information Act, 2005, made under cover of a letter dated August 23, 2024. Finding no material showing that those informations had been supplied, the Court directed respondent no.3 and/or the SPIO, North 24 Parganas to provide the informations forthwith, subject to the informations not falling within the category of Section 8 of the Right to Information Act, 2005. Liberty was given to communicate the server copy of the order to respondent no.3 and the District Magistrate, North 24 Parganas, who were directed to act on the server copy; an urgent Photostat certified copy was to be furnished upon compliance with formalities.

Item No.24 02.04.2025 Court. No. 236 GB

W.P.A. 6421 of 2025

Kiriti Sen & Ors.

Vs.

The State of West Bengal & Ors.

Mr. Mukteswar Maity, Ms. Manika Sarkar

… for the Petitioners.

Mr. Soumitra Bandopadhyay, Mr. Srinath Singha Roy

… for the State.

Affidavit-of-service filed in Court today is taken on record.

At the time of hearing learned advocate for the writ petitioners submits before this Court that though in the prayer portion of the writ petition it has been written by the writ petitioners that they have been aggrieved for non-consideration of the representation dated August 20, 2024, but for the present an appropriate order may be passed directing the respondent authority, more specifically the respondent no.3 to provide informations with regard to the questionnaires pursuant to an application under Section 6 of the Right to Information Act, 2005 under cover of the said letter dated August 23, 2024.

Such prayer is vehemently opposed on behalf of the respondent State.

On careful consideration of the copy of the letter dated August 23, 2024 as written by the writ petitioners addressed to the respondent no.3, it appears to this Court that under the provisions of Right to

2

Information Act, 2005 the writ petitioners have asked for some informations as mentioned in the said letter from the respondent no.3.

No materials could be placed that the informations as sought for have been supplied to the writ petitioners though the answers to the questions have been called for under Section 6 of the Right to Information Act, 2005.

In view of such while disposing the instant writ petition, this Court directs the respondent no.3 and/or SPIO, North 24 Parganas to provide the informations as sought for by the writ petitioners under cover of the letter dated August 23, 2024, forthwith if the said informations do not fall under the category of Section 8 of the Right to Information Act, 2005.

With the aforementioned observations the instant writ petition is disposed of.

Liberty is given to the writ petitioners to communicate the server copy of this order to the respondent no.3 as well as to the District Magistrate, North 24 Parganas for their immediate compliance. The respondent no.3 as well as the District Magistrate, North 24 Parganas are directed to act on the server copy of this order.

Urgent Photostat certified copy of this order, if applied for, be given to the parties upon compliance of all necessary formalities.