Read Time: 04 minutes

Synopsis

The Delhi High Court on Friday refused to entertain a plea filed by Ehtesham Qutubuddin Siddique, a convict in the Mumbai blast case, against the order of the Central Information Commission (CIC) rejecting his RTI plea seeking that the Centre may sanction a “fresh investigation” in the case.

Siddiqui was detained in July 2006 by the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorist Squad in Mumbai in connection with the 7/11 Mumbai Train Blast case. On November 30, 2006, he was charged with a number of offences under UAPA. He is currently lodged in the Nagpur Central Prison.

Justice Subramonium Prasad orally observed, “Right to Information is only for seeking information and not for a direction…There is a limit to use of this (RTI)Act. How can this be granted under RTI?”

The single-judge bench was dealing with Siddiqui’s plea against a September 13, 2022 order of the CIC, which had rejected his appeal on the ground that the “information regarding the authorities mentioned in the second schedule (of the RTI Act) could not be granted”.

Siddiqui had contended that he had been “falsely convicted”.

Justice Prasad noted that the information sought by Siddiqui pertained to a sanction or an order by the Centre to the NIA to consider taking up a “fresh investigation” into the July 7, 2006 Mumbai bomb blast case.

The court noted that this was not a case of seeking information but for a direction to the Central Government to conduct a fresh investigation which was not within the purview of the RTI Act.

“ ..this court was inclined to dismiss the writ petition with costs”, it said. However, the counsel for Siddiqui prayed for withdrawal of the plea.

“Taking into account the facts of the case, this court is inclined to take a sympathetic view and permit the petitioner to withdraw the writ petition. The petition is dismissed as withdrawn along with the pending application(s), if any”, the court ordered.

Case Title: Ehtesham Qutubuddin Siddiqui v. CPIO, National Investigation Agency