Order reserved on 16.10.2025 Order pronounced on 14.01.2026 Order uploaded on 14.01.2026 NAFR HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR WPC No. 1707 of 2012

1. High Court of Chhattisgarh through Registrar General, Bilaspur, District Bilaspur, CG

2. The Public Information Officer, High Court of Chhattisgarh, Bilaspur CG., District Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh --- Petitioners versus

1. Rajkumar Mishra son of late Shri Ganesh Prashad Mishra, R/o Haldibadi, Chirmiri Distt. Koriya Chhattisgarh.

2. The State Information Commission through the State Information Commissioner, Nirmal Chhaya Bhawan Meera Datar Road, Shankar Nagar, Raipur Chhattisgarh --- Respondents WPC No. 323 of 2013

1. High Court of Chhattisgarh through Registrar General, Bilaspur, District Bilaspur, CG

2. The Public Information Officer, High Court of Chhattisgarh, Bilaspur CG., District Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh --- Petitioners versus

1. Rajkumar Mishra son of late Shri Ganesh Prashad Mishra, R/o Haldibadi, Chirmiri Distt. Koriya, Chhattisgarh.

2. The State Information Commission through the State Information Commissioner, Nirmal Chhaya Bhawan, Meera Datar Road, Shankar Nagar, Raipur Chhattisgarh --- Respondents WPC No. 1525 of 2019

1. Public Information Officer, High Court of Chhattisgarh Bodri, Bilaspur, District Bilaspur, CG

2. First Appellate Authority (Right to Information), High Court of Chhattisgarh, Bilaspur CG. District Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh --- Petitioners versus

1. Chhattisgarh State Information Commission through its Secretary, First Floor, Indravati Block, Shashtri Chowk, Raipur, District Raipur Chhattisgarh

2. Rajkumar Mishra son of late Shri Ganesh Prashad Mishra, aged about

48 years R/o Haldibadi, Chirmiri Distt. Koriya Chhattisgarh.

--- Respondents For Petitioners : Shri Amrito Das, Shri Abhijeet Mishra and Shri Yashraj Verma, Advocates For Respondent - : Shri Shyam Sunder Lal Tekchandani, Advocate CGSIC Private respondent appeared through VC (Hon’ble Shri Justice Sachin Singh Rajput)

C A V Order

In all the above Writ Petitions the order passed by State Information Commission directing the petitioners herein to provide information sought for by the applicant Rajkumar Mishra pertaining to complaints made against the three judicial officers of the State of Chhattisgarh, the certificates submitted by them to secure the job and also as regards to departmental enquiry and other enquiry initiated against them, is under challenge. Since the issue involved in all these three Writ Petitions is identical, they are being disposed of by this common order.

2. For convenience, the facts are taken from WPC No. 1525 of 2019 Private respondent Rajkumar Mishra made an application seeking certain confidential information with regard to the three judicial officers of the entire State of Chhattisgarh, which however was rejected on 17.07.2017. First Appeal preferred against the order dated 17.07.2017 also came to be dismissed vide order dated 08.09.2017. Chhattisgarh State Information Commissioner vide order dated 07.01.2019 however allowed the Second Appeal preferred under Section 19(3) of the Right to Information Act, 2005 (for short “the RTI Act”) directing the petitioner – Information Officer to provide the information sought for within a period of 30 days from the date of order, free of cost through registered AD. It is this order which has been assailed by the petitioner in these petitions.

3. Learned counsel for the petitioners make the following submissions:-

3.1 that the impugned order dated 07.01.2019 is absolutely without jurisdiction and therefore non est and void in the eye of law;

3.2 that the statutory duty as conferred upon the authority has to be discharged only in the manner as has been provided under the statute, and therefore it was mandatory for the State Information Commission to have passed an order on the second appeal instead of it being passed by the Commissioner alone;

3.3 that Section 15(1) of the RTI Act relates to constitution of a “body” to be known as the ‘State Inform