The Indian Express: New Delhi: Wednesday, 19 April 2023.
The Delhi High Court on Tuesday dismissed a plea moved by a death row convict, seeking disclosure of information from the Ministry of Home Affairs on banning the outfit Indian Mujahideen under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
The petitioner, Ehtesham Qutubuddin Siddique, convicted in the July 11, 2006 Mumbai train blasts case, was sentenced to death by a special court under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crimes Act (MCOCA) in October 2015. He is presently lodged in the Nagpur Central Prison.
Siddique filed an application under the Right to Information (RTI) Act seeking “background notes” of the Centre and reports of certain state governments in relation to the ban on IM, which was stated to have carried out the blast, the court noted.
He had challenged the Central Information Commission’s (CIC) order of June 13, 2019, denying him the information on the ground that it was covered under the exemptions provided in the RTI Act.
A single-judge bench of Justice Prathiba Singh observed, “A perusal of the information shows that the same has far-reaching consequences. The same organisation is stated to be involved in various unfortunate incidents since 2005, some resulting in severe loss of life and property.”
The High Court said under such circumstances the government may have received confidential reports and disclosure of that information would “severally jeopardise the sources of various authorities in the state and the Centre”. It said the CIC’s order denying information is “correct and does not require interference”.
The court further said the nature of the information sought would have a “bearing on the sovereignty and security of India.”
“In view of the above, the writ petition is devoid of merit and is dismissed,” ruled the court.
Siddique’s counsel Arpit Bhargava argued that the information sought in the RTI application was needed to prove the innocence of his client in the criminal case and there was no further need to maintain confidentiality in relation to the “background notes” and the reports of the states as Indian Mujahideen has already been declared a banned organisation under UAPA.
The Centre’s counsel responded by saying that the information sought is confidential and would prejudice public interest.
In February, the HC had dismissed another plea moved by Siddique seeking reports filed by the Maharashtra and Andra Pradesh governments on the investigation into the 7/11 train blasts. The HC had held that “reports and dossiers by intelligence authorities relating to terrorist activities, which are subject matter of investigation, are barred and thus cannot be disclosed under RTI especially if they compromise the sovereignty and integrity of the country”.
The Delhi High Court on Tuesday dismissed a plea moved by a death row convict, seeking disclosure of information from the Ministry of Home Affairs on banning the outfit Indian Mujahideen under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
The petitioner, Ehtesham Qutubuddin Siddique, convicted in the July 11, 2006 Mumbai train blasts case, was sentenced to death by a special court under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crimes Act (MCOCA) in October 2015. He is presently lodged in the Nagpur Central Prison.
Siddique filed an application under the Right to Information (RTI) Act seeking “background notes” of the Centre and reports of certain state governments in relation to the ban on IM, which was stated to have carried out the blast, the court noted.
He had challenged the Central Information Commission’s (CIC) order of June 13, 2019, denying him the information on the ground that it was covered under the exemptions provided in the RTI Act.
A single-judge bench of Justice Prathiba Singh observed, “A perusal of the information shows that the same has far-reaching consequences. The same organisation is stated to be involved in various unfortunate incidents since 2005, some resulting in severe loss of life and property.”
The High Court said under such circumstances the government may have received confidential reports and disclosure of that information would “severally jeopardise the sources of various authorities in the state and the Centre”. It said the CIC’s order denying information is “correct and does not require interference”.
The court further said the nature of the information sought would have a “bearing on the sovereignty and security of India.”
“In view of the above, the writ petition is devoid of merit and is dismissed,” ruled the court.
Siddique’s counsel Arpit Bhargava argued that the information sought in the RTI application was needed to prove the innocence of his client in the criminal case and there was no further need to maintain confidentiality in relation to the “background notes” and the reports of the states as Indian Mujahideen has already been declared a banned organisation under UAPA.
The Centre’s counsel responded by saying that the information sought is confidential and would prejudice public interest.
In February, the HC had dismissed another plea moved by Siddique seeking reports filed by the Maharashtra and Andra Pradesh governments on the investigation into the 7/11 train blasts. The HC had held that “reports and dossiers by intelligence authorities relating to terrorist activities, which are subject matter of investigation, are barred and thus cannot be disclosed under RTI especially if they compromise the sovereignty and integrity of the country”.
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