Wife Can't Seek Husband's IT Returns Under RTI Act For Maintenance Proceedings, Exempt Under 'Personal Information': Karnataka High Court

The Karnataka High Court has held that a spouse cannot obtain the Income Tax Returns and financial records of the other spouse through an application under the Right to Information (RTI) Act, 2005, as such information constitutes 'personal information' under Section 8(1)(j) of the RTI Act, exempt from disclosure.

"…The details disclosed by a person in his income tax returns are personal information which stand exempted from disclosure under clause (j) of Section 8(1) of the RTI Act, unless a larger public interest is established…The expression 'larger public interest' postulates an interest that extends beyond the individual parties to the dispute and concerns the public at large or a significant section thereof. An individual maintenance dispute... remains primarily a private matter between the spouses", the bench sitting at Bengaluru observed in the court order by relying on Girish Ramchandra Deshpande v. CIC, 2012 AIR SCW 5865.

Justice Suraj Govindaraj, however, explained further that the courts where the maintenance proceedings are being adjudicated can summon the relevant documents from the Income Tax Department for a fair assessment of the financial capacity of the concerned parties.

Though the court held that income details cannot be obtained from the Central Public Information Commissioner (CPIO) through an RTI application because it does not satisfy the test of 'larger public interest', the spouse can still approach the courts in maintenance claims to induce the production of such documents.

“…The Court [maintenance courts] shall not determine maintenance based merely on oral assertions or unverified claims regarding income. Where the income of either party is disputed, the Court shall suo motu consider invoking its powers to summon documentary evidence, including income tax returns and related financial records…”, the judge noted in the annexure to the order.

Stating the aforesaid, the court partly allowed the writ petition while granting the wife liberty to approach the court hearing the maintenance case for assessing the financial records of her husband. The Income Tax Department will likely be required to furnish the financial documents before the maintenance court as per Section 138 of the Income Tax Act, 1961.

The High Court has also issued detailed guidelines to apply for the 'production orders' with respect to the financial records of either spouse.

Read more: https://www.livelaw.in/high-court/karnataka-high-court/karnataka-high-court-issues-gender-neutral-guidelines-financial-records-spouses-526752

Case Title: Income Tax Officer and CPIO v. Smt. Gulsanober Bano Zafar Ali Ansari and another

Case No: Writ Petition No.34625 of 2019

Citation: 2026 LiveLaw (Kar) 112

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