के (cid:3)ीय सूचना आयोग Central Information Commission बाबा गंगनाथ माग(cid:18), मुिनरका

Baba Gangnath Marg, Munirka नई िद(cid:24)ी, New Delhi – 110067 File No: CIC/CCITB/A/2024/111668 Asad Hussain .….अपीलकता(cid:18)/Appellant VERSUS बनाम PIO, O/o the Commissioner of Income Tax (Exemptions), 6th Floor, Unity Annexe Building, P Kalinga Rao Road, Bengaluru - 560027 ….(cid:29)ितवादीगण /Respondent Date of Hearing : 27.08.2025 Date of Decision : 11.09.2025 INFORMATION COMMISSIONER : Vinod Kumar Tiwari Relevant facts emerging from appeal:

RTI application filed on : 16.12.2023 CPIO replied on : 21.12.2023 First appeal filed on : 25.01.2024 First Appellate Authority’s order : 15.02.2024 Compliance of FAA order : Not on record

2nd Appeal/Complaint dated : 28.03.2024 Information sought:

1. The Appellant filed an RTI application dated 16.12.2023 (offline) seeking the following information:

“Hazrath Shaikh Minhajuddin Ansari Kallerawan Charitable Trust Kalaburagi, registered under section 12 AB of Income Tax Act 1961. This organization is working since last 40 years for the minority community, especially marginalized people. All its activities are in public interest, and their activities are not for profit. Hence, they are collecting funds and donations for their activities.

In this connection furnish the following information along with relevant certified documents, papers etc.:

1) Provide set of documents submitted by the above-mentioned Trust for registration u/s 12 AB of the Income Tax Act.”

2. The CPIO furnished a reply to the Appellant on 21.12.2023 stating as under:

“In the absence of PAN, the information cannot be generated and provided, as the data in this office is PAN based.”

3. Being dissatisfied, the appellant filed a First Appeal dated 25.01.2024.

The FAA vide its order dated 15.02.2024, upheld the reply of CPIO.

4. Feeling aggrieved and dissatisfied, appellant approached the Commission with the instant Second Appeal.

Relevant Facts emerged during Hearing:

The following were present:-

Appellant: Present through video conference.

Respondent: Shri Murlidhar Raju G, CPIO/Income Tax Officer (HQ)

(Exemptions), appeared through video conference.

5. Proof of having served a copy of Second Appeal on respondent while filing the same in CIC on 26.03.2024 is not available on record. The Respondent confirmed non-service.

6. The Appellant inter alia submitted that complete information was not provided by the Respondent till the date of hearing. He clarified that he was not the member of the said Trust.

7. The Respondent while defending their case inter alia submitted that they had filed detailed written submissions dated 19.08.2025 disclosing complete facts of the case and requested the Commission to place the same on record, copy of the same is marked to the Appellant. The relevant paras of the written submission are reproduced as under:

“2. This submission is to elaborate the reasons for denying the information sought in the RTI application dated December 16, 2023. The applicant requested the "set of documents submitted by Hazrath Shaikh Minhajuddin Ansari Kallerawan Charitable Trust Kalaburagi for registration under Section 12AB of the Income Tax Act, 1961". The initial CPIO replied on December 21, 2023, and stated that "in the absence of PAN, the information cannot be generated and provided, as the data in this office is PAN based". The First Appellate Authority (FAA) subsequently upheld this denial with a comprehensive order on February 15, 2024. The core contentions of the FAA are as follows:

A. Information Held in Fiduciary Capacity by the FAA: The First Appellate Authority explicitly ruled that the information sought, specifically the Trust's registration documents, is "held in a fiduciary capacity by the Income Tax Department". This means the Department holds the information in trust, on behalf of the assessee. The order clarifies that "information pertaining to an assessee cannot be disclosed unless the CBDT authorizes it to reveal such information o