Important Point-Sections 18 and 19 of RTI Act serve two different purposes and lay down two different procedures and they provide two different remedies.

1. These two petitions are filed by two different Market Committees. In Special Civil Application No.10259 of 2013, to be referred as ‘First Petition’, Agriculture Produce Market Committee, Unjha and its Chairman have challenged the order dated 14.5.2013 passed by respondent No.1- Chief Information Commissioner in Complaint No.646/ 2006-07 filed by respondent No.5 under Section 18 of the Right to Information Act, 2005 (‘the Act’).

2. In Special Civil Application No.13987 of 2013, to be referred as ‘Second Petition’ Agriculture Produce Market Committee, Chhota Udepur has challenged the order dated 25.7.2013 passed by respondent No.1 in Complaint No.673/2010-11 filed by respondent No.3 under Section 18 of the Act.

3. In the first petition, by order dated 27.6.2013, notice was issued to the respondents for final disposal of the petition making it returnable on 15.7.2013. In second petition, by order dated 10.1.2014, the Court after recording that the issue involved therein was identical to the issue involved in the first petition, ordered to hear the second petition with the first petition.

4. The common issue raised in both the petitions is as to whether a Market Committee established and constituted under Section 9 read with Section 11 of the Gujarat Agriculture Produce Markets Act, 1963 (‘the Market Act’) falls within the definition of a ‘Public Authority’ under Section 2(h) of the Act.

5. It appears that a group of three petitions, being Special Civil Application No.6419 of 2007 and allied matters, was filed before this Court challenging the decision of the respondent No.2 therein, whereby the Market Committees were ordered to provide informations as sought for by the applicants therein and also challenging the Government Resolution dated 26.4.2006 directing all Market Committees to appoint Information Officer as provided under the Act. This Court while deciding the said group of petitions found from the orders impugned therein that the respondent No.2 therein (respondent No.1 herein) had not dealt with the issue as to whether the Agricultural Produce Market Committee was amenable to the provisions of the Act on the basis of the definition contained in Section 2(h) of the Act, more particularly Clause (d) of Section 2. The Court, therefore, quashed and set aside the orders impugned therein and also the resolution passed by the Government directing the Market Committees to appoint Information Officer and remanded the matter to respondent No.2 to decide as to whether Agriculture Produce Market Committees are covered under the provisions of the Act or not. The Court clarified that the impugned orders were quashed without entering into the merits of the case and it was left to the respondent No.2 to decide the issue on merits.

6. Learned advocates for the petitioners at the outset made grievance that the respondent No.1 has not considered and decided the issue as to whether the Market Committee is covered by definition of a Public Authority under Section 2(h) of the Act as required to be decided. Learned advocates for the parties, on being asked whether they are agreeable if these matters are finally heard on such issue and periphery issues on merits and decided by this common judgment, they state that it is better if such issue is finally concluded in the present matters.

7. It appears that the first petition is amended so as to challenge the jurisdiction of respondent No.1 to issue direction for providing information sought for by respondent No.5 in exercise of the powers under Section 18 of the Act. Merit of such challenge shall be later on gone into, if so required.

8. Learned advocate Mr. B.S. Patel appearing for the petitioners submitted that to be a public authority as defined in Section 2(h) of the Act, an authority, a body or institution of self Government has to meet with the criteria as provided in Section 2(h) of the Act. Mr. Patel submitted that establishment or constitution of the Market Committee is neith