Foreign Trade dept denies sports arms import data under RTI, CIC orders disclosure

New Delhi, Feb 24 (PTI) The Central Information Commission (CIC) has directed the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) to disclose numerical figures relating to the import of arms and ammunition for sports purposes over the past five years, after holding that the information was wrongly denied under the Right to Information Act.

The direction came after the DGFT rejected an RTI application seeking calibre-wise details of sports arms imports by bodies such as the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI), Sports Authority of India (SAI), rifle clubs, state associations and renowned shooters, citing exemption under Section 8(1)(d) of the RTI Act.

Section 8(1)(d) deals with exemptions from disclosure of information that includes commercial confidence, trade secrets or intellectual property, unless the competent authority is satisfied that a larger public interest warrants the disclosure of such information.

In its order, Information Commissioner Khushwant Singh Sethi noted that the DGFT admitted during the hearing that it possessed the sought information but failed to justify how the exemption applied to numerical data.

"Commission queried the respondent (foreign trade department) on how did they claim exemption U/s 8(1)(d) of the RTI Act when the appellant has sought quantity of imported arms for sports purpose. To this, the respondent did not give any satisfactory response," the order said.

The Commission referred to a 2012 notification, which mandates that recommending or certifying bodies maintain records of sports-related arms imports and observed that only numerical figures had been sought.

The CIC directed the DGFT to provide a revised, point-wise reply limited to numerical figures, while ensuring that information exempt under the RTI Act is not disclosed. PTI MHS MHS KVK AMJ AMJ