HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE NAGESH BHEEMAPAKA WRIT PETITION No. 7534 OF 2024

O R D E R:

This Writ Petition challenges refusal of Respondents

2 and 3 – Deputy and Assistant Commissioners of Police to furnish the information requested in RTI Application bearing Dy.No.8/Nov/2023 dated 02.11.2023.

2. The case of petitioner – party-in-person is that by way of RTI Application, he sought information with regard to the list of persons on whom PD Act (Telangana Prevention of Boot Legers Act, 1986) was imposed by the CP for period of 1 Jan 2022 to 31 Oct 2023. His grievance is that the 3^rd respondent refused to furnish the same by order dated 21-11-2023 taking the plea of Section 24 of the Right to Information Act,2005 (‘the Act’, for brevity). Aggrieved thereby, petitioner is stated to have preferred first appeal to the Additional DCP (Admin), Office of Commissioner of Police, Cyberabad which was forwarded to the 2nd Respondent. The said Appeal was dismissed on 13-02-2024 on the same plea.

3. Drawing attention to Proviso to Section 24(4) of the Act, petitioner submits that both the respondents committed an error while disposing the RTI Application and First Appeal respectively. The Hon’ble Apex Court in catena of decisions held that Right to Information is a fundamental right under Article 19(1) of the Constitution of India. It is submitted that the person who has been detained under Preventive Detention Law either made by the Parliament of India or the State Legislature, his or her rights under Article 21 of the Constitution of India are violated. It is further submitted that detention orders are passed by the Commissioner of Police, Cyberabad who is not listed in the G.O.Ms.No.667, General Administration (GPM&AR) Dept, dated 03-09-2007, 4. Learned Government Pleader for Information & Technology, based on the averments in the counter-affidavit filed by the Assistant Commissioner of Police, CCRB-cum-Public Information Officer, Cyberabad Commissionerate, submits that the information sought cannot be provided, as the same is the subject matter of Special Branch (SB), which is exempted from furnishing under Section 24(4) of the RTI Act, 2005 and as per G.O. Ms. No. 667, General Administration (GPM & AR) Department, dated 03-09-2007. According to him, by virtue of the powers vested under Section 24(4), the State Government issued notification to the effect that provisions of said Act shall not apply to the intelligence and Security organizations established by the State Government including the Special Branches (SB) subject to the conditions indicated in the provisions there under, vide G.O.Ms. No. 667, General Administration (GPM & AR) Dept., dated 03-09-2007. It is submitted that the contention of petitioner that person who is detained in prison due to Telangana PD Act, their human rights and Article 21 are violated by the State Instrumentalities is not correct and baseless, as detention orders are passed by the Detaining Authorities i.e. Commissioners of Police/District Collectors in exercise of the powers conferred under Section 3(2) of the Act 1 of 1986, duly following the well-established procedure and in strict compliance with the mandatory provisions under the said Act and also the safeguards as contemplated under Article 22 of the Constitution, hence the question of violation of human rights does not arise. In this regard, learned Government Pleader relied upon the judgment of the Hon’ble Supreme Court in Union of India Vs. Dimple Happy Dhakad dated 18.07.2019 in Criminal Appeal No. 1064 of 2019.

5. Petitioner has come up with reply to the counter- affidavit filed by the 2^nd respondent. Placing reliance on Section 24(5), it is stated that every notification “shall” be laid before the State Legislature, however, G.O.Ms.No. 667 dated 03.09.2007 was not laid before the State Legislature. In response to the RTI Application dated 24.09.2024, it is stated that the said G.O. was not laid before the State legislature of Andhra Pradesh and no entrie