Central Information Commission
U. Annadurai vs Central University Of Tamil Nadu on 5 March, 2026
के ीय सू चना आयोग
Central Information Commission
बाबा गंगनाथ माग, मुिनरका
Baba Gangnath Marg, Munirka
नई िद ी, New Delhi - 110067
File No: CIC/CUOTN/A/2025/100588
U. ANNADURAI .....अपीलकता/Appellant
VERSUS
बनाम
THE CPIO
CENTRAL UNIVERSITY OF TAMIL NADU,
RTI CELL, DISTTTHIRUVARUR,
TAMILNADU- 610005 .... ितवादीगण /Respondent
Date of Hearing : 02.03.2026
Date of Decision : 02.03.2026
INFORMATION COMMISSIONER : Sudha Rani Relangi
Relevant facts emerging from appeal:
RTI application filed on : 09.09.2024
CPIO replied on : 09.10.2024
First appeal filed on : 24.10.2024
First Appellate Authority's order : 04.12.2024
2nd Appeal/Complaint dated : 31.12.2024
Information sought:
1. The Appellant filed an RTI application dated 09.09.2024 seeking the following information:
"Send me names, marital status, date of birth, community, educational qualification and when their degrees were passed, and, office addresses of all members of the interview committees which conducted personal interviews held during the month of august,2024 in your university, to select guest faculties in the department of mathematics, department of biotechnology, department of law, department of Tamil, department of Page 1 of 9 English and other departments of your university, department wise and their sex, communities, home addresses.
1. send me the names, educational qualifications, SET/NET and date of passing NET/NET, sex, date of birth, communities, marital status, home address, last employments held by each applicant/candidate who attended the above said interviews in the month of august, 2024, in each department of your university, as given in the first question
2. Send me the names of candidates who were selected as guest faculties in each department in the interviews held during the month of august,2024 in your university as per the first two questions asked as above with reasons for selection & reasons for Not-selections.
3. send me sanctioned strength of teaching and non-teaching posts for each department of your university and the number of vacancies in the teaching and non-teaching posts in each of your department as on 1 august, 2024 in your university.
How many computers are working in each department on 20/8/2094.?
4. send me the native state and marks abtained in their higher secondary Examination indicating the maxima marks of each student who are studying in the first year and second year integrated 5-year pg. courses in your university as on 1 September 2024 department wise along with their marks scored in CUET UG 2024 NTA&CUET UG 2023.
5. Send me the details about the exemption given to set qualified candidates from the requirement of UGC/CSIR NET as per the prospectus of UGC NET June 2024 under NΤΑ
6. what are the provisions for reemployment of retired college teachers in colleges/universities as per UGC rules now? As on 20 august 2024?
7. How much money did your university paid to each of the committee members each interview committees which conducted interviews for guest faculties for each department asked in this petition during the month of august 2024? As DA/TA etc.
8. how much money did your university pay to each candidate who attend these interviews cited in the letter as above as DA/TA or any other allowances?
9. how much money did each department and your university spend in conducting Each of these interviews for the selection of guest faculties in the month of august,2024?
10.what is the upper age limit for retired college/university teachers to apply and attend the interviews for the guest faculty cited in this petition as above? Give the rule of the UGC which allow the university Page 2 of 9 (the details of wages and age limit for superannuated college & University Teachers for eligibility for guest faculty) Appoint Guest faculties.
11. Send me number of girls (women)& Number of boys(Men) studying in each class year wise under integrated 5-year PG course and integrated 4 year UG courses, 2-year PG courses, Diploma courses and Ph.D., studies of each of your department year wise as on 1 September 2024.and give number of vacant seats in each year class under integrated 5-year PG course and integrated 4 year UG courses, 2-year PG courses, Diploma courses and Ph.D., studies"
2. The CPIO furnished a reply to the Appellant on 09.10.2024 stating as under:
"Reply for 1 - The information falls within the ambit of Sec. 8(1)(g) of the Right to Information Act, 2005 and the decision of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in Bihar Public Service Commission Vs Saiyed Hussain Abbas Rizvi, 2012, and therefore, cannot be provided.
Reply for 2 - The information qualifies as personal information and falls within the purview of Sec.8(1)(j) of the Right to Information Act, 2005.
Reply for 3 - The requested information is annexed in Annexure I Reply for 4 - Total Teaching post Sanctioned-208 Vacant positions as on 01.08.2024-30 Total Non-Teaching posts Sanctioned 130 Vacant positions as on 01.08.2024-32 The requested information is provided in Annexure III Reply for 5 - The information qualifies as personal information and falls within the purview of Sec.8(1)(j) of the Right to Information Act, 2005. Admission of students to CUTN is based on CUET scores and not on HSC marks.
Reply for 6 - No such exemption is found in prospectus of joint CSIR/UGC NET June 2024 https://csirnet.nta.ac.in/ Page 3 of 9 Reply for 7 - UGC guidelines F.No.25-1/2018(PS/MISC.) dated 28.01.2019 enclosed in Annexure II Reply for 8 - Total Expenditure incurred during the month of August 2024 is Rs.7,49,151/-. This amount includes the amount incurred for regular interview also. If the expert name id provided, individual wise payment details may be provided.
Reply for 9 - NIL Reply for 10 - Total Expenditure incurred during the month of August 2024 is Rs.7,49,151/-. This amount includes the amount incurred for regular interview also. If the expert name id provided, individual wise payment details may be provided.
Reply for 11 - UGC guidelines F.No.25-1/2018(PS/MISC.) dated 28.01.2019 enclosed in Annexure II Reply for12 - The requested information is annexed in Annexure IV."
3. Aggrieved by the decision of the CPIO, the Appellant filed a First Appeal dated 24.10.2024. The FAA vide its order dated 04.12.2024, stating as under-
"
Query Reply Question no.1 In some of the interview No information for fresh queries committee's number of members were less than in the appeal can be provided. 4, and some of the members were not proper in The applicant may submit a asking the question to the persons interviewed. fresh RTI application with fresh For example when I appeared on 20th August queries. 2024 for the post of guest faculty in mathematics' at department of
mathematics Central university Tamilnadu, Thiruvarur, only three persons two men and one woman were in the committee. One man member asked irrelevant questions about computer applications while I am a mathematician and I was to be interviewed in mathematics. Another lady member came into the interview hall only when my interview was about to over. It is the right of all candidates to be interviewed to know who is interviewing her/him and the education age, office address, designation of the committee members should be informed to the interviewed candidates casts also important as per govt of Page 4 of 9 India norn. There is no secret in cast/religions as everything is based on caste/religion and sex in India in addition to money power.
Question no.2. The CPIO refused to give the In the appeal, no specific answer saying the matter is personal information question or request for The names, education all qualification, particulars information under the RTI Act, about UGC NET/CSIR NET/SET is not the personal 2005, has been specified. matter of the candidates. Also their past work, No information for fresh queries age, sex, caste are not personal matters. They get in the appeal can be provided. work/selection or rejection based mainly on sex, The applicant may submit a age, marital status, home address, last fresh RTI application with fresh employments, and castes rather than their past queries. experience and their qualifications. Though maximum age for guest faculty is 70 years for retired college/university teachers as per UGC rules, it is said that retired college teachers were denied in the selection of guest faculty at least in the department of mathematics of your university now. It is against right to life and right to live as you deny the right to earn money to meet his/her wages by proper work as per UGC rules if you deny employment for retired college teachers who do not get any monthly pension and who belong to poor families.
Question no.3 Though your CPIO has given the No information for fresh queries names of all guest faculties who were selected by in the appeal can be provided. your university during the month of August, The applicant may submit a 2024,the file/selection committees notings and fresh RTI application with fresh reasons for selection file/selection and reasons for queries. not selection details were not given by your CPIO. It is said some of the selected candidates were already employed in your departments and so the details about last employments is needed.
Question no.5 Your CPIO refused to give the This information cannot be answers as the information is personal. The provided as it comes under native state, HSC marks of each students Section 8(1)(j) of RTI Act, 2005 admitted in the first year integrated PG courses and UG courses along with their marks in CUET 2023 and CUET 2024 are not given by your CPIO. These are not personal matters of the students. Caste, religion, state, address, marks in HSC, CUET are not matter/information that are to be available to personal. Any the parliament of India is to be given to any person under RTI Act 2005. Question no.6 The details of exemptions from No information for fresh queries Page 5 of 9 UGC NET/CSIR NET is given in the information in the appeal can be provided. bulletin of the June, 2024, UGC NET,2024 in the The applicant may submit a NTA website. But the central and state fresh RTI application with fresh universities do not give any exemptions to those queries. Who passed SET before, 1, June, 2002 from NET in India this is wrong. [your CPIO should see the rule no.S.3(iii) of the information bulletin of the UGC NH JUNE 2024 page in the NTA website).
Question no.7 Your CPIO has given a UGC circular No information for fresh queries for guest faculty only but she did not give in the appeal can be provided. anything about reemployment of retired The applicant may submit a college/university teachers as temporary fresh RTI application with fresh assistant professors/associate professor queries. /professors with salaries not less than that of an assistant professors last salary.
Question no.8 Your CPIO did not give the details Following payment released to of payment given to each of the members in each the External Expert for Guest interview committees in each department for the faculty interview conducted selection of guest faculties during the month of department wise during August August, 2024 in your University. This information 2024:-
is necessary to know about the fact about your (i) Department of Geography committees and your expenditure. Rs.4,500/-
(ii) Department of Education (Maths) Rs.7,120/-
(iii) Department of Applied Psychology Rs.6768/-
(iv)Department of Mathematical Science - Rs.5,300/-
(v) Department of Music - Rs.
10,582/-
(vi) Department of English -
Rs.5,824/-
(vii) Department of Tamil -
Rs.3,200/-
(viii) Department of Social Work Rs.2,000/-
(ix) Department of Law -
Rs.6,013/-
(x) Department of Chemistry -
Rs.8,697/-
(xi) Department of Hindi -
Rs.3,000/-
(xii) Department of
Biotechnology Rs.8,130/-
"
Page 6 of 9
4. Challenging the FAA's order, Appellant is before the Commission with the instant Second Appeal.
Relevant Facts emerged during Hearing:
The following were present:-
Appellant: Shri U Annadurai present through video conference. Respondent: Ms. Sangeetha Sriraam, Assistant Professor/CPIO present through video conference.
5. Written statement of the CPIO is taken on record vide which a revised updated reply on each point of RTI application (under reference) has been provided to the Appellant.
6. On being pointed out by the Bench that the information sought in the instant RTI application appears to be voluminous in nature and also contain the elements of personal information of third-party which are exempted from disclosure under Section 8 (1)(j) of the RTI Act, 2005. In response to it, the Appellant restricted his arguments to point No. 6 of RTI Application by pleading that as per UGC NET Information Bulletin of 2024, clause 5.3 (iii), the candidates who have cleared the State Eligibility Test (SET) accredited by UGC for Assistant Professor post held prior to 01st June 2002, are exempted from appearing in NET and are eligible to apply for Assistant Professor anywhere in India. Appellant claimed that University has failed to extend the said exemption by not giving appointments to such candidates including Appellant who is otherwise well qualified in SET exams. In this regard, the Appellant sought intervention of the Commission.
7. CPIO stated that point-wise reply along with relevant available information as is permissible under the RTI Act, 2005 has already been provided to the Appellant in the first instance and again vide revised reply. In response to Appellant's contentions, CPIO clarified that such exemption as claimed by the Appellant is not applicable to the Department of Mathematics.
The decision to exempt SET candidates from NET exam is a policy decision of CSIR and the UGC where the Public Authority has no role to play.
Page 7 of 9Decision:
8. Heard the parties.
9. Upon perusal of records of this matter, the Commission observes that the core contention raised by the Appellant during hearing is limited to point No. 6 of RTI application where he pleaded that as per UGC NET information Bulletin 2024, candidates qualified State Eligibility Test (SET) are exempted from clearing NET exams for getting selection for the Assistant Professor.
Appellant has brought attention of the Commission towards the contents of Information Bulletin 2024 clause 5.3 (iii), which is taken on record. On the other hand, the CPIO explained that such exemption as claimed by the Appellant is not applicable to the Department of Mathematics. The decision to exempt SET candidates from NET exam is a policy decision of CSIR and the UGC where the Public Authority has no role to play.
10. Considering the rival contentions of the parties, the Commission arrived at a conclusion that no supportive documents have been produced by the CPIO either in the reply or during hearing to support their version that such exemption is not available to the candidates who cleared SET exams, as such. Hence, the reply of the CPIO on point No. 6 of RTI application appears to be vague and incomplete in nature and is thus, set aside.
11. The Commission is of the view that in the absence of any supporting documents to justify the denial of information for not extending the exemption as claimed by the Appellant, defeats the purpose of exemption if applicable in this matter of RTI and therefore, the Commission, deems it fit to direct, Ms. Sangeetha Sriraam, CPIO to revisit the contents of point No. 6 of RTI application under reference to provide a revised categorical reply clarifying the factual position vis-à-vis the exemption in question along with supporting documents. The revised reply shall be provided to the Appellant, free of cost, within two weeks from the date of receipt of this order under due intimation to the Commission.
12. No further intervention of the Commission is required in the matter, at this stage.
The Appeal is disposed of accordingly.
Sd/-
Sudha Rani Relangi(सुधा रानी रे लंगी) Information Commissioner (सूचनाआयु ) Page 8 of 9 Authenticated true copy (अिभ मािणत स ािपत ित) (Anil Kumar Mehta) Dy. Registrar 011- 26767500 Date Shri U. ANNADURAI Page 9 of 9 Recomendation(s) to PA under section 25(5) of the RTI Act, 2005:-
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