₹25,000 RTI Penalty Quashed, Deliberate Withholding of Information Must Be Proved: Chhattisgarh High Court

The Chhattisgarh High Court at Bilaspur has set aside a Rs.25,000 penalty imposed on Radhika Sidar under the Right to Information Act, 2005. The penalty had been imposed by the Chhattisgarh State Information Commission after Akash Bairagi sought information about the accounts, funds, achievements and beneficiaries of Gram Panchayat Pachheda. The High Court found that there was no clear finding that the information had been deliberately or knowingly withheld by…