Team Goemkarponn
TALEIGAO: In a sharp rebuke to Goa University’s stand that faculty qualifications constitute private information, the State Information Commission has ruled that academic certificates submitted during recruitment are public documents and must be disclosed under the RTI Act.
Overturning the First Appellate Authority’s decision, State Chief Information Commissioner Aravind Nair directed the University to provide the Degree, Master’s and PhD certificates of Prof Shaila D’Souza within 10 days, stating that such records cannot be shielded by Section 8(1)(j) or labelled as “third party information.”
Nair noted that once educational certificates are handed over to a public authority for the purpose of employment, they become part of official files and fall squarely within the public domain. “These documents are with Goa University, and they cannot be denied as someone’s personal information,” he observed, adding that public recruitment processes must remain open to scrutiny.
The order stemmed from an appeal filed by Nazario Savio P. D’Souza of St Cruz, who had sought 30 pieces of information from the University’s Administration (Teaching) section on September 30, 2024. According to the appellant, the Public Information Officer responded selectively—marking 14 items as “Not Available,” seven as “Third Party,” three as “questions,” and another under Section 8(1)(g) relating to confidentiality of the selection panel.
The PIO maintained that several of the requested details were personal in nature and therefore exempt from disclosure. When the applicant challenged this before the First Appellate Authority, FAA Prof Jivan Parab directed corrections only for the “Not Available” responses but upheld the refusal on the grounds that the faculty member had not consented to the release of her certificates.
Still unable to access the key documents, the appellant approached the State Information Commission on April 1, 2025.
The SIC has now ruled decisively that such certificates must be released, emphasising that citizens have a legitimate right to verify the qualifications of individuals appointed by public institutions.
Ordering full disclosure, the Commission instructed the University’s PIO to provide certified copies of all three qualification certificates within 10 days and file a compliance report within 15 days of receiving the order.
