Public Authority Cannot Be Compelled To Create Information Under RTI: Delhi High Court

KanoonHQ Legal Gazette · AI-generated brief from the source linked below. How briefs are made

Published 3 November 2026

Case: Not stated in the source
Court: High Court of Delhi
Bench: Not stated in the source
Citation: Not stated in the source
Statutes: Right to Information Act, 2005
Source: Verdictum

Bottom Line Up Front (BLUF)

The Delhi High Court set aside a Central Information Commission (CIC) order that directed the High Court to provide a list of delayed judgments. The Delhi High Court held that a public authority cannot be compelled to create information under the Right to Information Act, 2005.

Ratio Decidendi · Legal Principle Established

A public authority cannot be compelled to create information that does not already exist in a material form, under the Right to Information Act, 2005.

Practice & Procedural Impact for Advocates

Advocates seeking information under the RTI Act must ensure the information already exists with the public authority. Litigants should note that public authorities are not obligated to generate new data in response to RTI requests.

Key Legal Takeaways

1Public authorities are not required to create information to satisfy an RTI request.
2The RTI Act mandates disclosure of existing information, not the generation of new records.
3CIC orders directing creation of information are liable to be set aside by High Courts.

The Legal Issue The Delhi High Court considered a petition challenging an order issued by the Central Information Commission (CIC). The CIC had directed the High Court, as a public authority, to compile and provide a list of judgments that had been delayed. The core legal question was whether a public authority could be compelled under the Right to Information Act, 2005, to create information that was not already in existence or maintained in a material form.

Court's Reasoning The Delhi High Court held that the Right to Information Act, 2005, obliges public authorities to disclose information that is already available and maintained by them. However, the Act does not impose a duty on public authorities to create new information or compile data that is not already part of their records. The court reasoned that compelling a public authority to generate a list of delayed judgments would amount to requiring the creation of new information, which falls outside the scope of the RTI Act. Therefore, the CIC's order was deemed to be beyond its powers under the Act.

What Follows The Delhi High Court set aside the impugned order of the Central Information Commission. This means the High Court is not required to compile or provide the list of delayed judgments as directed by the CIC. The decision clarifies the limits of the RTI Act regarding the creation of information by public authorities.