In a recent decision, the Central Information Commission (CIC) ruled that a husband has the right to seek generic income details of his estranged wife through the Right to Information (RTI) Act in order to corroborate evidence in a maintenance case.
In the case of Yash Malhotra vs. CPIO, IT Dept, Information Commissioner Saroj Punhani directed the Central Public Information Officer (CPIO) of the Income Tax Department to provide the husband with “generic details of the net taxable income/gross income” of his estranged wife.
The decision came in response to the appellant’s request for income-related details of his wife to support his case in a maintenance dispute before the Court of Law. The CPIO had initially denied the information citing Section 8(1)(j) of the RTI Act.
The CIC’s order, dated September 27, 2023, directed the CPIO to provide the requested income details to the appellant free of cost within 15 days. Additionally, a compliance report was to be submitted to the Commission by the CPIO within 7 days of providing the information.
The appellant had filed the RTI application in February 2022, seeking the income details of his wife. When the CPIO denied the information, the appellant filed an appeal, which was also upheld. Dissatisfied with the decision, the appellant proceeded to file a Second Appeal with the CIC, leading to the recent ruling.
