Cooperative societies do not fall under ambit of RTI Act, rules Madras High Court

The Madras High Court has set aside an order passed by Tamil Nadu Information Commission (TNIC) directing a cooperative society to disclose details regarding the loans extended by it, and ruled that cooperative societies are not amenable to the Right to Information (RTI) Act of 2005.

The Madras High Court has set aside an order passed by Tamil Nadu Information Commission (TNIC) directing a cooperative society to disclose details regarding the loans extended by it, and ruled that cooperative societies are not amenable to the Right to Information (RTI) Act of 2005.

Justice V. Bhavani Subbaroyan said that cooperative societies registered under the Tamil Nadu Cooperative Societies Act of 1983 in the State would not fall under the definition of the term ‘public authority’ as it had been defined under Section 2(h) of the RTI Act of 2005.

The verdict was passed while allowing a writ petition filed by the president of Madhanam Primary Agricultural Cooperative Credit Society in Sirkazhi Taluk, Mayiladuthurai district. The petitioner society had challenged an order passed by the TNIC on May 4, 2022 for disclosure of crop and jewel loan details.

K. Jeeva, a member of the petitioner’s society, had initially filed an RTI application with the Deputy Registrar of Cooperative Societies in Mayiladuthurai seeking details of loans extended to farmers between 2015 and 2021 and information regarding the property documents submitted to secure the loans.

The petitioner wanted the information to establish his claim that the petitioner society had extended a huge number of crop loans on the basis of fake property documents and thereafter waived off those loans on the basis of the decisions taken by the State government to assist indigent farmers.

He stated that in the year 2021-22 alone, a whopping amount of ₹10,292 crore had been disbursed towards crop loans to 14.84 lakh farmers through cooperative societies and that the Centre as well as the State governments provide various incentives too, on payment of the interest amount on such loans.

The RTI applicant wanted to prove that the benefit seldom reaches marginal farmers. However, when he could not get a satisfactory reply from the Deputy Registrar as well as the Joint Registrar, who was the first appellate authority, he filed a second appeal, under the RTI Act, before the TNIC.