Verdictum: Karnataka: Thursday, 24 July 2025.
The petitioner Club sought issuance of a direction quashing the order passed by the Karnataka Information Commission.
The Karnataka High Court has held that the RTI Act would be applicable to Bengaluru’s Century Club as the grant of land on which the club is situated amounts to a substantial contribution of financing by the State, made by the then Maharaja of Mysore.
The petitioner sought issuance of a direction quashing the order passed by the Karnataka Information Commission.
The Single Bench of Justice Suraj Govindaraj observed, “I answer the point raised by holding that the grant of land on which the petitioner club is situated would amount to a substantial contribution of financing by the State, made by the then Maharaja of Mysore, for making the RTI Act applicable to the petitioner club.”
Advocate M.S. Rajendra represented the Petitioner while Advocate G.B. Sharath Gowda represented the Respondent.
Factual Background
The petitioner is a society registered under the Provisions of the Karnataka Societies Registration Act, 1960, started by His Highness Maharaja of Mysore Shri Narasimha Raja Wodeyar and Sir M. Visveswaraya. The petitioner club was granted 7.5 acres of land by the then Maharaja of Mysore in the year 1913 for the activities of the petitioner, pursuant to which the said land stood vested in the petitioner club and had been used thereafter to carry out its activities. The Respondent (private person) submitted an application to the petitioner under Subsection (1) of Section 6 of the Right to Information Act, 2005, seeking a certified copy of the list of records duly catalogued and indexed as required to be maintained under Section 4 (1)(a).
The petitioner club informed the first respondent that the petitioner is not a public authority as defined under Subsection (4) of Section 2, and therefore, there is no requirement for the petitioner club to furnish the said information. The first respondent filed a complaint with the Karnataka Information Commission stating that the Maharaja of Mysore, having provided a free grant of 7.5 acres of land, amounts to substantial indirect finance by the State and therefore, the petition would be covered under the RTI Act. The petitioner was directed to furnish the information. It was in such circumstances that the petition came to be filed before the High Court.
Reasoning
The Bench noted that the Maharaja of Mysore was the patron-in-chief of the petitioner club and the Maharaja had granted 7.5 acres of land in the year 1913 for the activities of the petitioner club. There was no payment which was made by the petitioner-club to the Maharaja of Mysore or the Kingdom of Mysore.
The Bench found that it was the land of 7.5 acres, which was situated abutting the Cubbon Park, which had been used for establishing the petitioner club, and apart from this land, the petitioner club was not established in any other land belonging to the petitioner club or otherwise. “Thus, without this land, the very existence of the petitioner club would fall into doubt inasmuch as no activities of the petitioner club could be carried out without this land being available to the petitioner”, it said.
Addressing the petitioner’s contention that the day-to-day activities, expenses, maintenance, etc., were carried out from the contribution of the members, the Bench stated that without the land, the activities of the petitioner club could not be run. As per the Bench, if the valuation of the land of 7.5 acres was taken into consideration, the same would run into hundreds of crores if not thousands. Therefore, the contribution made by the members of the petitioner-club, as membership fees or any other head of account, would pale into insignificance.
“In that view of the matter, it is clearly and categorically established that there is a substantial contribution made by the State. i.e., the erstwhile Kingdom of Mysore, through the Maharaja of Mysore, who granted 7.5 acres of land to the petitioner-club in 1913, thereby making the provisions of the RTI Act applicable. I do not therefore, find any infirmity in the order passed by respondent No. 2, the Karnataka Information Commission”, it said while dismissing the Petition.
Cause Title: Century Club v. S. Umapathy (Neutral Citation: 2025:KHC:24838)
Appearance Petitioner: Advocate M.S. Rajendra Respondent: Advocate
G.B. Sharath Gowda
(Click here to read/download Order)
The petitioner Club sought issuance of a direction quashing the order passed by the Karnataka Information Commission.
The Karnataka High Court has held that the RTI Act would be applicable to Bengaluru’s Century Club as the grant of land on which the club is situated amounts to a substantial contribution of financing by the State, made by the then Maharaja of Mysore.
The petitioner sought issuance of a direction quashing the order passed by the Karnataka Information Commission.
The Single Bench of Justice Suraj Govindaraj observed, “I answer the point raised by holding that the grant of land on which the petitioner club is situated would amount to a substantial contribution of financing by the State, made by the then Maharaja of Mysore, for making the RTI Act applicable to the petitioner club.”
Advocate M.S. Rajendra represented the Petitioner while Advocate G.B. Sharath Gowda represented the Respondent.
Factual Background
The petitioner is a society registered under the Provisions of the Karnataka Societies Registration Act, 1960, started by His Highness Maharaja of Mysore Shri Narasimha Raja Wodeyar and Sir M. Visveswaraya. The petitioner club was granted 7.5 acres of land by the then Maharaja of Mysore in the year 1913 for the activities of the petitioner, pursuant to which the said land stood vested in the petitioner club and had been used thereafter to carry out its activities. The Respondent (private person) submitted an application to the petitioner under Subsection (1) of Section 6 of the Right to Information Act, 2005, seeking a certified copy of the list of records duly catalogued and indexed as required to be maintained under Section 4 (1)(a).
The petitioner club informed the first respondent that the petitioner is not a public authority as defined under Subsection (4) of Section 2, and therefore, there is no requirement for the petitioner club to furnish the said information. The first respondent filed a complaint with the Karnataka Information Commission stating that the Maharaja of Mysore, having provided a free grant of 7.5 acres of land, amounts to substantial indirect finance by the State and therefore, the petition would be covered under the RTI Act. The petitioner was directed to furnish the information. It was in such circumstances that the petition came to be filed before the High Court.
Reasoning
The Bench noted that the Maharaja of Mysore was the patron-in-chief of the petitioner club and the Maharaja had granted 7.5 acres of land in the year 1913 for the activities of the petitioner club. There was no payment which was made by the petitioner-club to the Maharaja of Mysore or the Kingdom of Mysore.
The Bench found that it was the land of 7.5 acres, which was situated abutting the Cubbon Park, which had been used for establishing the petitioner club, and apart from this land, the petitioner club was not established in any other land belonging to the petitioner club or otherwise. “Thus, without this land, the very existence of the petitioner club would fall into doubt inasmuch as no activities of the petitioner club could be carried out without this land being available to the petitioner”, it said.
Addressing the petitioner’s contention that the day-to-day activities, expenses, maintenance, etc., were carried out from the contribution of the members, the Bench stated that without the land, the activities of the petitioner club could not be run. As per the Bench, if the valuation of the land of 7.5 acres was taken into consideration, the same would run into hundreds of crores if not thousands. Therefore, the contribution made by the members of the petitioner-club, as membership fees or any other head of account, would pale into insignificance.
“In that view of the matter, it is clearly and categorically established that there is a substantial contribution made by the State. i.e., the erstwhile Kingdom of Mysore, through the Maharaja of Mysore, who granted 7.5 acres of land to the petitioner-club in 1913, thereby making the provisions of the RTI Act applicable. I do not therefore, find any infirmity in the order passed by respondent No. 2, the Karnataka Information Commission”, it said while dismissing the Petition.
Cause Title: Century Club v. S. Umapathy (Neutral Citation: 2025:KHC:24838)