The list of passengers on a flight cannot be given under the RTI Act as no public interest is served in its disclosure, the Central Information Commission has held while rejecting the plea of an ex-Navy official accused of murdering a woman two years ago.
Currently lodged in Mumbai's Arthur Road Prison, Manish Thakur is accused of shooting his girlfriend 24-year-old Kaushambi Layek, an employee of Tata Consultancy Service, whose body was found from the honeymoon suite of a hotel on May 14, 2007, where both had allegedly checked-in. Police allege that Thakur had escaped to Goa after committing the crime.
He was arrested from INS Hansa in Goa where he was undergoing advanced training and was produced before a Mumbai court on May 18.
Thakur sought details of passengers travelling on Indian Airlines flights from Mumbai to Goa on May 13, and 14, 2007 under the Right to Information Act.
The aviation company refused to disclose the identity of passengers citing exemption clauses of RTI Act with supporting grounds that no public interest is served in the disclosure.
"The appellant has neither indicated as to how he is affected in the matter or what is the public interest in disclosure of the details of passengers, the denial of information u/s 8(1)(j) of the Act is therefore justified," the Commission said.
{{/usCountry}}"The appellant has neither indicated as to how he is affected in the matter or what is the public interest in disclosure of the details of passengers, the denial of information u/s 8(1)(j) of the Act is therefore justified," the Commission said.
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