(1)Any information obtained by the Lokayukta or any of his officers or other employees in the course of, or for the purposes of, any preliminary enquiry under this Act, and any evidence recorded or collected in connection with such information, shall, subject to the provisions of clause (a) of sub-section (2) of section 11, be treated as confidential; and notwithstanding anything contained in the Indian Evidence Act, 1872, no court shall have jurisdiction to compel the Lokayukta or any public servant to give evidence relating to such information or to produce the evidence so recorded or collected.(2)Nothing in sub-section (1) shall apply to the disclosure of any information or particulars(a)for the purposes of any investigation or any report to be made on such investigation or any action or proceedings to be taken on such report; or(b)for the purposes of any proceedings for any offence under the Official Secrets Act, 1923, or any offence of giving false evidence or fabricating false evidence under the Indian Penal Code, 1860, or any trial of an offence under section 15, or any proceedings under section 18, of this Act; or(c)for such other purposes as may be prescribed(3)Such officer or authority as may be prescribed in this behalf, may give notice in writing to the Lokayukta with respect to any document or information specified in the notice or any class or category of documents so specified, that in the opinion of the State Government, the disclosure of the document or the information or the class or category of documents would be prejudicial to the public interest; and where such a notice is given, the Lokayukta may, for reasons to be recorded in writing decide as to whether the disclosure of such document or information or class or category of documents involves public interest. In case the disclosure of any document or information or class or category of documents so specified is held to involve public interest, the Lokayukta or any of his officers or other employees shall not communicate to any person any such document or information or class or category of documents.
