Justice V. Bhavani Subbaroyan said that cooperative societies registered under the Tamil Nadu Cooperative Societies Act of 1983 in the State would not fall under the definition of the term ‘public authority’ as it had been defined under Section 2(h) of the RTI Act of 2005.

The Madras High Court has set aside an order passed by Tamil Nadu Information Commission (TNIC) directing a cooperative society to disclose details regarding the loans extended by it, and ruled that cooperative societies are not amenable to the Right to Information (RTI) Act of 2005.

Justice V. Bhavani Subbaroyan said that cooperative societies registered under the Tamil Nadu Cooperative Societies Act of 1983 in the State would not fall under the definition of the term ‘public authority’ as it had been defined under Section 2(h) of the RTI Act of 2005.