Bar councils covered under the purview of Right To Information (RTI) Act

The bar councils are open to public scrutiny under the Right To Information (RTI) Act and should set-up a mechanism to facilitate processing of applications directed to them under the transparency law, the Central Information Commission has held.

The Bar Council of India and Bar Council of Punjab and Haryana had rejected several RTI applications saying though they were set-up under the Advocates Act, 1961 they did not get direct or indirect funding from the government, hence out of the purview of the RTI Act.

However, the commission in a recent order held that the councils might not have been financed by the central or state governments but they were setup under an Act passed by Parliament and hence they are covered by the RTI act.