Subhash Chandra Agarwal case
Also called: CPIO, Supreme Court v. Subhash Chandra Agarwal (2019) · Topic: Judiciary: Independence, Structure, Judicial Review and Activism · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
In this case, a five-judge bench of the Supreme Court ruled on 13 November 2019 that the office of the Chief Justice of India is a public authority under the RTI Act. This means people can seek information from it under the Act. The Court also said that disclosure must be weighed against privacy and judicial independence, so collegium discussions on appointing judges can be kept secret. The case is a key step in judicial accountability, the idea that judges must answer for how they use their power.
Example
Building on this openness, the Supreme Court's full court decided in April 2025 to publish judges' assets.
Don't confuse with
- Collegium resolutions: since October 2017 the collegium has chosen to publish its final decisions. The 2019 case was about the CJI's office coming under the RTI Act.
Related concepts
- Judicial accountability
- Master of the roster
- Sealed cover jurisprudence
- Live-streaming of court proceedings
- Recusal