Are Charitable Trusts Under the Bombay Act Subject to RTI? Seeking Guidance

Dear Seniors,

I request you to please guide us in the matter of RTI for charitable organizations which are registered under the Bombay Charitable Trust Act and adjudicated by the Charity Commissioner.

Do these organizations come under the purview of RTI? Hope to receive a response at the earliest.

Do have a fruitful and happy day ahead.

A

Understanding the Applicability of RTI Act, 2005

1. Any establishment or institution, whether charitable or not, will be covered under the RTI Act, 2005 if it falls within the scope and definition of a "public authority" as defined under section 2(h) of the said Act. The extract of the relevant section 2(h) is mentioned as follows:

"Public authority" means any authority or body or institution of self-government established or constituted—

(a) by or under the Constitution;
(b) by any other law made by Parliament;
(c) by any other law made by State Legislature;
(d) by notification issued or order made by the appropriate Government,

and includes any—

(i) body owned, controlled, or substantially financed;
(ii) non-Government organization substantially financed, directly or indirectly by funds provided by the appropriate Government.

2. In view of the above, you can examine whether the said charitable trust, in respect of which you want to know, falls under the definition of "public authority" as mentioned above. If the said charitable trust does not fall within the above definition, then it is not liable to furnish any information under the said Act.

3. There are case decisions on this issue, and I think you can consult such decisions from the website of the CIC and form your opinion accordingly.

Regards.

Dear Placements.Fortune.Pune,

Mr. Harsh Kumar has rightly said that under Sec 2(a) and 2(h) of the RTI Act, if the charitable institution is being substantially financed by the government, it comes under the purview of the RTI Act; otherwise, not. However, it came to my reading some time back that some State Information Commission gave a decision to cover all charitable institutions under the purview of the RTI Act. But to my knowledge, there is no amendment in the law.

Thank you.

Please let me know if you need any further assistance.

Best regards