Summary: The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI), through its First Appellate Authority Sanjay Manocha, disposed of an appeal filed by Sundaresan Viswanathan under Section 19 of the Right to Information Act, 2005, concerning the failure of its Central Public Information Officer (CPIO) to respond to an application seeking information about financial frauds and corporate insolvencies. The appellant had submitted the RTI application on 7 September 2026, requesting details of action taken by IBBI and other regulatory bodies regarding financial frauds, diversion of funds, audit irregularities, corporate insolvencies and recovery of defrauded amounts involving Yes Bank, DHFL, IL&FS, PMC Bank, New India Cooperative Bank, Reliance Capital and Reliance Infrastructure. As no response was furnished within the prescribed period, the appellant filed an appeal dated 9 October 2026. The First Appellate Authority examined the application, the respondent’s position and the appeal in light of the statutory framework governing access to information under the RTI Act. Referring to Sections 2(f), 2(j) and 3, the Authority observed that information held by or under the control of a public authority, including records, documents, reports and electronic data, is accessible subject to statutory exemptions under Section 8. It specifically noted that the deadline for disposing of the RTI application expired on 7 October 2026, but the CPIO had failed to furnish any reply. Emphasising the obligation of public information officers to observe prescribed timelines, the Authority urged the respondent to comply with the statutory requirements when handling information requests. It accordingly directed the CPIO to dispose of the pending application expeditiously and closed the appeal. The order does not determine the allegations concerning the identified financial institutions or direct disclosure of any particular information.
BEFORE THE GENERAL MANAGER AND FIRST APPELLATE AUTHORITY
INSOLVENCY AND BANKRUPTCY BOARD OF INDIA
7th Floor, Mayur Bhawan, Shankar Market,
Connaught Circus, New Delhi -110001
Dated: 10th November 2026
Order under section 19 of the Right to Information Act, 2005 (RTI Act) in respect of RTI
Appeal Registration No. ISBBI/A/E/26/00054
IN THE MATTER OF
Sundaresan Viswanathan …Appellant
Vs.
Central Public Information Officer
The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India
7th Floor, Mayur Bhawan, Shankar Market,
Connaught Circus, New Delhi -110001 … Respondent
1. The Appellant has filed the present Appeal dated 9th October 2026, under the Right to Information Act (RTI Act). Due to administrative workload arising from unforeseen circumstances, same is disposed of within 45 days of receipt as enshrined under Section 19(6) of the RTI Act.
2. In the impugned RTI Application, the Appellant had sought information regarding the action taken by IBBI and other regulatory bodies in relation to financial frauds, corporate insolvencies, diversion of funds, audit irregularities and recovery of defrauded amounts related to Yes Bank, DHFL, IL&FS, PMC Bank, New India Cooperative Bank, Reliance Capital and Reliance Infrastructure.
3. I have carefully examined the application, the response of the Respondent and the Appeal and find that the matter can be decided based on the material available on record. In terms of section 2(f) of the RTI Act ‘information’ means “any material in any form, including records, documents, memos e-mails, opinions, advices, press releases, circulars, orders, logbooks, contracts, reports, papers, samples, models, data material held in any electronic form and information relating to any private body which can be accessed by a public authority under any other law for the time being in force.” It is pertinent to mention here that the Appellant’s “right to information’ flows from section 3 of the RTI Act and the said right is subject to the provisions of the Act. Section 2(j) of the RTI Act defines the “right to information” in term of information accessible under the Act which is held by or is under the control of a public authority. Thus, if the public authority holds any information in the form of data, statistics, abstracts, an applicant can have access to the same under the RTI Act subject to exemptions under section 8.
4. In this regard, the impugned RTI application was filed on 7th September 2026. The deadline to dispose of the application expired on 7th October 2026. However, the CPIO has failed to furnish a reply to the Appellant. Being CPIO of Public Authority like IBBI, the Respondent should be sensitive to timelines and disposal of information request. I would, therefore, encourage and urge the Respondent to consider the requirements of law while dealing with information requests under the RTI Act and dispose of RTI applications within the prescribed time. Accordingly, the CPIO is directed to dispose of the impugned application in expeditious manner.
5. The Appeal is, accordingly, disposed of.
Sd/-
(Sanjay Manocha)
First Appellate Authority
Copy to:
1. Appellant, Sundaresan Viswanathan
2. CPIO, The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India, 7th Floor, Mayur Bhawan, Shankar Market, Connaught Circus, New Delhi -110001.
