The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI), acting through its First Appellate Authority, disposed of an RTI appeal concerning queries on the treatment of fully paid and registered residential flats in real estate projects undergoing CIRP or liquidation. The appellant sought clarifications on whether such flats form part of the builder’s liquidation estate and requested supporting circulars or guidelines. The authority held that under the Right to Information Act, 2005, only existing information available on record can be disclosed, and public authorities are not required to provide clarifications, interpretations, or opinions. It was further noted that the Central Public Information Officer (CPIO) responded beyond the statutory timeline, and was advised to adhere to prescribed deadlines in future. The appeal was disposed of without directing further disclosure, reinforcing that RTI cannot be used to seek legal interpretations beyond recorded material.
BEFORE THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR AND FIRST APPELLATE AUTHORITY
INSOLVENCY AND BANKRUPTCY BOARD OF INDIA
7th Floor, Mayur Bhawan, Shankar Market,
Connaught Circus, New Delhi -110001
Dated: 1st April 2026
Order under section 19 of the Right to Information Act, 2005 (RTI Act) in respect of RTI Appeal Registration No. ISBBI/A/E/26/00011
IN THE MATTER OF
Chandra S Vanam
……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 10th March 2026, challenging the communication of the Respondent, filed under the Right to Information Act (RTI Act).
2. In its RTI application, the Appellant had stated the following: –
“Kindly clarify the following with respect to real estate projects under CIRP/liquidation: –
(1) Whether residential flats for which 100%consideration has been paid and Sale Deed along with proportionate Undivided Share of Land has already been registered in favour of purchaser prior to initiation of CIRP, are treated as part of the builder s assets during liquidation.
(2) If not treated as builder s assets, kindly confirm whether such registered flats remain with the respective purchasers.
(3) Whether any provision exists under IBC/CIRP guidelines permitting inclusion of already registered home buyer flats in liquidation estate.
(4) Kindly provide copies of relevant circulars/guidelines/orders, if any, governing treatment of registered homebuyer flats in CIRP/liquidation.”
3. I have carefully examined the applications, the responses of the Respondent and the Appeals 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, etc. an applicant can have access to the same under the RTI Act subject to exemptions under section 8.
4. In this regard, I note that the Appellant had filed the RTI application on 25th January 2026. The deadline to dispose of the impugned RTI Application expired on 24th February 2026. It is seen that the reply has been sent to appellant on 19th March, 2026. Being CPIO of a 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 in future.
5. The Appeal is, accordingly, disposed of.
Sd/-
(Kulwant Singh)
First Appellate Authority
Copy to:
1. Appellant, Chandra S Vanam
2. CPIO, The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India, 7th Floor, Mayur Bhawan, Shankar Market, Connaught Circus, New Delhi -110001.
