Business Standard: New Delhi: Monday,
October 03, 2016.
Government
employees' cooperative society Kendriya Bhandar will now be answerable under
the Right to Information Act as the Central Information Commission has declared
it to be a public authority under the law.
The
Commission said the Central Government holds 81.30 per cent of the paid up
capital as per the accounts of the Ministry of Public Grievance and Pension
submitted by it to Parliament for the year 2008-09.
"This
implies that the Central Government is a majority shareholder of Kendriya
Bhandar. Also, holding of majority equity shares implies that the Central
Government is the owner of Kendriya Bhandar," Information Commissioner
Sudhir Bhargava said in his order.
He said to
corroborate, recourse can be made to Section 617 of the Companies Act, 1956
which states that where 51 per cent or more paid up capital is held by the
Central Government or the State Government, such company shall be a government
company.
Kendriya
Bhandar, which was approached by several RTI applicants including activist R K
Jain on wide range of topics, had claimed that it does not come under the ambit
of the transparency law.
It cited a
Supreme Court judgement in Thalappalam Ser Cooperative Bank Ltd versus State of
Kerala and others to seek exemption from the RTI Act.
"The
said case will not be applicable to the present matter as the Supreme Court has
restricted itself to the cases of cooperative societies registered or deemed to
be registered under the Cooperative Societies Act which are not owned,
controlled or substantially financed by the State or Central Government or
formed or Constituted by law made by the Parliament or State Legislature,"
the complainants argued.
Rejecting the
arguments of Kendriya Bhandar, Bhargava said the Commission, is of the view
that since the Central Government is a majority shareholder up to the extent of
owning 81.60 per cent of paid up capital is the owner of Kendriya Bhandar or in
other words Kendriya Bhandar is owned by the Central Government within the
meaning of Section 2(h)(d)(i) of the RTI Act.
"The
Commission also observes that in order for an authority to be declared as
'Public Authority' so as to be amenable under the RTI Act it has to qualify the
test of Section 2(h) of the RTI Act," he said.
The website
of Kendriya Bhandar says it was set up in 1963 in pursuance of Union Cabinet
decision as a welfare project for the benefit of Central Government employees
and public at large.
"It is
functioning under aegis of Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and
Pensions, Government of India and was registered with Delhi Registrar of
Cooperative Societies.
Subsequently,
it was registered with Central Registrar of Cooperative Societies, Govt of
India as a Multi State Consumer Cooperative Society in September, 2000,"
it says.
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