Can details of insurance policy be disclosed under RTI?

Background        

The appellant sought information pertaining to insurance policy taken by a person. The Public Information Officer (PIO) denied the information under section 8(1)(j) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, there shall be no obligation to give any citizen, information which relates to personal information the disclosure of which has no relationship to any public activity or interest, or which would cause unwarranted invasion of the privacy of the individual unless the Central Public Information Officer or the State Public Information Officer or the appellate authority, as the case may be, is satisfied that the larger public interest justifies the disclosure of such information: Provided that the information which cannot be denied to the Parliament or a State Legislature shall not be denied to any person. of the Right to Information (RTI) Act. During the hearing, the respondent stated that in absence of policy number, no information can be provided to the appellant.

View of CIC

The Central Information Commission (CIC) rejected the appeal noting that the information sought was related to preserved information and the disclosure of which would cause unwarranted invasion to the privacy of the individual. The Commission also held that no larger public interest has been established by the appellant.

Citation: Mr. Manoj Shamlal Rizwani v. LIC of India in Appeal No. CIC/DS/A/2011/002328