Deliver records to kid's dad: HC overrules that RTI doesn't cover pvt schools in case
student's transfer certificate
and admission form to the child's biological father within 15 days.
Justice Amitendra Kishore Prasad issued the order after the father, Rahul Gupta, moved court citing denial of information by the school despite multiple applications and complaints.
The school's counsel had also argued in court that the application was denied due to a dispute between the child's mother and father.
The court held that the petitioner, as the biological father, had the right to access his child's educational records and directed the Holy Cross Convent Senior Secondary School, Ambikapur, to deliver the documents to his provided address, email, and mobile number, overruling the school's objection that private schools are not covered under the RTI Act.
The order of the Single Bench of Justice Amitendra Kishore Prasad came in response to a petition filed by the father, Rahul Gupta, who sought copies of his son's Dakhil-Kharij (transfer certificate) and admission form. The petitioner stated that he applied to the CBSE-affiliated school on April 27, 2024, for the documents but received no response. Subsequently, he filed an application under Section 6(1) of the Right to Information (RTI) Act, 2005, with the district education office, Surguja, on April 29, 2024. However, this request was denied on the grounds that private schools are not covered under the RTI Act.
Aggrieved by this, the petitioner filed a first appeal to the district education officer (DEO) and first appellate authority, citing a previous letter from the office and decisions of the Central Information Commission indicating that private schools are indeed covered under Sections 2(g) and 2(h) of the RTI Act. The first appellate authority upheld the denial.
The petitioner then filed complaints with the district collector of Surguja, the chief minister, the secretary of school education, and the district collector. The DEO, acting on the chief minister's office's response, directed the petitioner to communicate with the school. On Oct 25, 2024, the petitioner reapplied to Holy Cross Convent Senior Secondary School, with an intimation to the DEO, but the school again denied the request on Oct 29, 2024.
However, the high court, considering the petitioner's right to information as the biological father, directed the school to provide the requested information within 15 days of receiving a certified copy of the order. The court also instructed the school to provide the information to the petitioner's address, email, and mobile number as listed in the petition.
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