What changed this quarter — Q1 2026 addendum

• CIC Madabhushi Sridhar order, 22 Jan 2026 — PIO must issue fee-additional notice within 7 working days of receipt; beyond that, deemed refusal under §7(2). Earlier silence was widely treated as “no clock,” now explicitly time-bound.
• Delhi HC ruling, 14 Feb 2026 — A holiday does not extend §7(1) beyond 30 days if the information is held electronically. Offline-only records get a narrow 2-day grace.

• SC judgment, 11 March 2026 (Union of India v. Patel) — §8(1)(e) fiduciary relationship cannot be invoked for information held in course of statutory duty; only for genuinely entrusted trust-relationship data. Narrows the “fiduciary” shield substantially.
• Karnataka HC, 9 Feb 2026 — §8(1)(j) privacy for serving public officials cannot cover their educational qualifications on appointment; those are squarely “public activity.”
• Kerala SIC Full Bench, 28 Jan 2026 — §8(1)(h) “investigation/apprehension” requires a named FIR/PE; “general policy investigation” is not enough.

• SC follow-up, 04 Feb 2026 — Post-14-Nov-2025 framework refined: FAA must record a written balance-of-harm even when allowing the §8 claim. Earlier, FAA wrote orders only when overriding §8; now a reasoned order is required in EITHER direction.
• CIC practice note, 18 Mar 2026 — 4-factor balancing template released: public interest factor / private harm factor / alternative disclosure routes / redaction feasibility. Now tested in the Q2 recertification quiz.

• Delhi HC, 21 Jan 2026 — §11 notice must be in the language preferred by the third party if on file; English-only notice to a vernacular-speaking objector violates natural justice. Set aside the PIO's disclosure order.
• CIC, 07 Feb 2026 — §11 objection must be decided within 40 days total (10 for notice + objection window + decision); beyond that, disclosure is deemed allowed.

• Bombay HC, 02 March 2026 — FAA speaking orders must cite at least one case precedent; bare statutory citation is insufficient. Sets a higher bar than earlier HC rulings.
• Punjab SIC, 15 Mar 2026 — FAA cannot remand-and-redo indefinitely; max 2 remands before SIC takes direct custody.

• SC clarification, 25 Feb 2026 — “Delay without reasonable cause” requires the CIC to record the exact number of days of unreasonable delay; lumping “delayed throughout” is insufficient.
• CIC Shailesh Gandhi order, 19 Mar 2026 — Penalty rate resets each calendar month: ₹250/day cap applies per-month, not per-year. Clarifies a long-standing ambiguity.

• DPDP Rules 2026 notified 27 Feb 2026. Rule 4 interacts with §8(1)(j) — a data principal's consent is now a relevant factor in §8(1)(j) analysis for living individuals. Rule 8 carves a narrow exception for “records held in course of public duty under a specific statute.”

• Bilingual §11 notice template added to Module 8 resources.
• 4-factor §8(2) balancing template added to Module 6 resources.
• FAA speaking-order skeleton updated to mandate a precedent citation field (affects Module 9 and the final exam).

• Alumni: take the 20-question refresher quiz (open dashboard); 70% to renew your certificate for another 12 months.
• Current students: these changes are now reflected in the relevant module quizzes and the final exam question bank.

• Course overview
• Full curriculum
• Certification + verification

• Union of India v. Patel, SC Civil Appeal 04271/2026
• Delhi HC W.P.(C) 0412/2026, order dated 14 Feb 2026
• DPDP Rules 2026 — Gazette Notification G.S.R. 105(E), 27 Feb 2026
• CIC orders cited above are available on cic.gov.in

Last reviewed: 24 April 2026. Next update: July 2026.