Communist Party of India (Marxist) on Tuesday told the Supreme Court that it supported the cause of financial transparency of political parties in the area of financial matters, but was against parties being compelled to disclose internal decisions, including why they chose a particular candidate.
CPI (M), represented by lawyer PV Dinesh, said the party has no objection to Right to Information (RTI) Act with regard to ensuring financial transparency but "there cannot be requests (under RTI) on why a candidate has been selected and for what reasons...and details on the internal decision making process of a party."
To this, a bench headed by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud orally observed that political parties may "have a point" when they fear that accountability under RTI may stretch to even disclosure of internal decisions, including why they chose a particular candidate.
"They have a point. They say, don't ask us to disclose how we chose our candidates... I don't think you can do that," the bench, also comprising Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, told counsels appearing for petitioners.
The Supreme Court was hearing a batch of petitions seeking a declaration that national and regional political parties were "public authorities" under the RTI Act. Several parties, including the Congress and the BJP, are made parties in this case.
During the brief hearing, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for Central government, told the bench that an order of the Central Information Commission (CIC) cannot be used to seek a writ from the top court to bring recognised political parties under the ambit of the RTI Act.
Advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for a petitioner NGO Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) contended that the CIC had in 2013 passed an order that political parties, which receive benefits like tax exemptions and land from the government, be brought under the RTI for ensuring transparency in the political system.
The Supreme Court adjourned the hearing for August 1 of two PILs filed by NGO ADR and lawyer Ashwini Updhyay as Attorney General R Venkataramani, who represents Centre in the case, was travelling and was not available.
The pleas sought directions to declare all national and state recognised political parties as a 'public authority' and hence come under the ambit of Right to Information (RTI) Act.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
Featured Video Of The Day
Imran Khan's Party To Be Banned By Pak For Alleged Anti-State Activities
Supreme Court Gets 2 New Judges, First From Manipur Couple Gets 6 Months In Jail For Bigamy, But With Alternate Prison Time Will Give Land For Bombay High Court Building: Maharashtra To Supreme Court What Trump Rally Shooter Did On Last Day Of His Life Trainee IAS Officer Puja Khedkar Recalled To Academy, Training Put On Hold Engineer Stole NEET Question Paper From Exam Body's Trunk, Arrested By CBI In Haryana, Amit Shah's Anti-Congress Warning On Muslim Reservation Swiggy, Zomato Might Soon Deliver Alcohol In These States: Report Jharkhand CDPO Preliminary Results 2024 Out, Check Details Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.