APPLYING THE LAW

Protection for Inadvertently Releasing Sensitive Information

The Official Secrets Act - and with it, the public service oath of secrecy - has been in place for so many years, that it is understandable that many officials may well be legitimately concerned that if they release information under an RTI law they may still be penalised by their superiors. Training will go some way towards helping public officials understand that they now have a legal duty to release information in accordance with RTI legislation.

Most RTI Acts in India go further though and specifically include a provision in the law which seeks to protect officials for inadvertently release sensitive information. Section 21 of the Central Act explicitly recognises that no prosecution or other legal proceeding will lie against any Government servant or officer for anything done or purported to have been done in good faith in pursuance of the provisions of the Central Act or Rules.

You should be aware of this protection because it aims to support you when you support the promotion of open government. The provision in the Central Act means that you can be safe in the knowledge that if you make a genuine mistake and wrongly release sensitive information you will not be penalised. Of course, if you deliberately release sensitive information knowing that you are not supposed to, this provision will not protect you.

Please click on the link to the Central RTI Act to read the detailed provisions contained in the law. Please click on the link to CHRI's State RTI pages to find out more about relevant rules and implementation in your specific State.