Exam marks not confidential under RTI for fellow candidates: Allahabad HC

The Allahabad High Court has ruled that marks obtained in public examinations cannot be treated as confidential information when requested by another candidate who appeared for the same test under the Right to Information Act, 2005.

A division bench of Justice Ajit Kumar and Justice Swarupama Chaturvedi delivered the ruling while partly allowing a writ petition filed by the Union of India through the General Manager of Diesel Locomotive Works and another authority.

In its order, the court held, "Marks obtained by a candidate, if information regarding that is sought by another candidate, who has also participated in examination, is not such a confidential private information which may require even consent of that third party under section eight of Right to Information Act, 2005."

The bench clarified that such requests are permissible when the applicant has taken part in the same examination. However, it noted that the situation may differ when the request comes from someone not connected with the examination.

"Well, of course, if an outsider seeks information, the department may take a valid defence of confidentiality. However, on the question of photocopies of the answer sheets, it may involve checking of answer sheets, signatures of examiners, etc., and, therefore, it may not be appropriate to disclose the names, signatures of the examiners," the court added.

The case arose from a recruitment test conducted by the Railways for the post of Legal Assistant. In 2008, a candidate named Santosh Kumar filed an RTI application seeking details of the marks awarded to three candidates, including himself, along with copies of their mark sheets.

Authorities did not initially provide the marks but allowed the applicant to inspect the answer sheets. The matter was later taken to the Central Information Commission in New Delhi, which directed the Railways to provide photocopies of the answer sheets.

Although the marks were subsequently disclosed, the General Manager of Diesel Locomotive Works in Varanasi challenged the CIC’s direction regarding photocopies by filing a review petition.

The review was dismissed on the ground that Indian Railways, being a public authority, is obligated to provide such information.

Following the dismissal, the GM filed a writ petition before the Allahabad High Court challenging the order.

In its judgment dated Feb 26, the court observed that personal information unrelated to public activity or public interest may be withheld under the RTI Act if its disclosure leads to an unnecessary invasion of privacy.

At the same time, it noted that such information can still be disclosed if public interest outweighs privacy concerns.

The bench concluded that revealing marks obtained in a public examination does not amount to an invasion of privacy.

However, it held that authorities cannot be compelled to provide photocopies of answer sheets because those documents may contain additional details that are not meant to be placed in the public domain.

"We may further observe that an application moved under the Right to Information Act, 2005, seeking relevant information, if furnished, the application stands satisfied."

Based on this reasoning, the court ruled that while candidates are entitled to obtain information about marks through RTI, they cannot claim photocopies of answer sheets as a matter of right.