CENTRAL INFORMATION COMMISSION
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Decision No. CIC/SM/A/2011/001197/SG/15028
Appeal No. CIC/SM/A/2011/001197/SG
Relevant facts emerging from the Appeal:
Appellant : Mr. Sunil Kumar
NM. 12/24 Town Ward
Nedumangad,
Thiruvananthpuram- 695541
Respondent : Mr. M. S. M. Verma
PIO & Dy. General Manager
Syndicate Bank,
Regional office,
Thiruvananthpuram- 695010
RTI application filed on : 25/11/2009
PIO replied on : 02/01/2010
First Appeal filed on : 08/09/2010
First Appellate Authority order on : 27/09/2010
Second Appeal received on : 03/01/2011
Q.No Query
1. Please provide amount of money the bank has to get from
1. Arvind Exports
2. B Unnikrishnan
3. Any firms owned by above.
Loan and interest separately.
2. Please provide the details of security obtained by the bank and value of the same.
3. Please provide whether value inflated any such observations made at any time in the bank
records.
4. Please provide from which dates are the dues pending.
5. Please provide the last details of the last payment made.
6. Please provide the details of the action taken for the recovery with dates.
7. Please provide whether usual procedure adopted in recovery of the dues.
Reply of PIO
Concerned PIO replied that the information sought is regarding the third party hence is exempted
under the RTI Act .
Grounds for the First Appeal:
Reply of the PIO was dissatisfactory.
Order of the First Appellate Authority (FAA):
According to the order of FAA the information sought by the appellant is regarding third party hence
the reply of PIO has been upheld.
Ground of the Second Appeal:
Information furnished by the PIO & the FAA's order was dissatisfactory.
Relevant Facts
emerging during Hearing:
The following were present
Appellant: Absent;
Respondent: Mr. M. S. M. Verma, PIO & Dy. General Manager on video conference from NIC-
Thiruvanantpuram;
The appellant had sought information about customers of the bank. The Bank has denied the
information claiming exemption under Section 8(1)(e) of the RTI Act. Section 8(1)(e) of the RTI Act
exempts information which is held in a fiduciary capacity by the public authority.
Section 8 (1) (e) of the RTI Act exempts from disclosure ‘information available to a person in his
fiduciary relationship, unless the competent authority is satisfied that the larger public interest warrants
the disclosure of such information;’
The traditional definition of a fiduciary is a person who occupies a position of trust in relation to
someone else, therefore requiring him to act for the latter’s benefit within the scope of that
relationship. In business or law, we generally mean someone who has specific duties, such as those
that attend a particular profession or role, e.g. doctor, lawyer, financial analyst or trustee. Another
important characteristic of such a relationship is that the information must be given by the holder of
information who must have a choice,- as when a litigant goes to a particular lawyer, a customer
chooses a particular bank, or a patient goes to particular doctor. An equally important characteristic for
the relationship to qualify as a fiduciary relationship is that the provider of information gives the
information for using it for the benefit of the one who is providing the information. All relationships
usually have an element of trust, but all of them cannot be classified as fiduciary. Information provided
in discharge of a statutory requirement, or to obtain a job, or to get a license, cannot be considered to
have been given in a fiduciary relationship.
In the instant case very clearly a fiduciary relationship exists, since customers of a Bank come to it
because of the implicit trust they have; and they provide information to the Bank for their own benefit.
Customers also have a choice of which bank they wish to approach. Hence unless a large public
interest is shown the information is exempted from disclosure. In the instant case no larger public
interest has been demonstrated.
Decision:
The appeal is disposed.
The information sought by the Appellant is exempted under Section 8(1)(e) of the
RTI Act.
This decision is announced in open chamber.
Notice of this decision be given free of cost to the parties.
Any information in compliance with this Order will be provided free of cost as per Section 7(6) of RTI Act.
Shailesh Gandhi
Information Commissioner
04 October 2011
(In any correspondence on this decision, mention the complete decision number. (AM)