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—rti-another-person-degree-marks-not-personal-information [2026/07/22 17:45] (current) – created - external edit 127.0.0.1
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 +{{htmlmetatags>metatag-description=(Can RTI reveal another person degree or marks? Yes, education is a qualification concerning society, not private. How to file and beat a Section 8 1 j refusal.)&metatag-keywords=(third party degree RTI, verify someone marks RTI, Section 8 1 j personal information, fake degree RTI India)&metatag-robots=(index,follow)&metatag-og:title=(Use RTI to Verify Another Person Degree or Marks: How-To 2026)&metatag-og:description=(Can RTI reveal another person degree or marks? Yes, education is a qualification concerning society, not private. How to file and beat a Section 8 1 j refusal.)&metatag-og:type=(article)}}
  
 +====== Use RTI to Verify Another Person Degree or Marks: Guide 2026 ======
 +
 +
 +{{ :social:auto:rti-another-person-degree-marks-not-personal-information.png?direct&1200 |Use RTI to Verify Another Person Degree or Marks: Guide 2026 — RTI Wiki}}
 +
 +Can you file an RTI to check whether a candidate, politician, job applicant, or suspected fake-degree holder actually earned the degree they claim? Yes. A person educational qualification, the degree they hold, and their marks are generally NOT private personal information that a Public Information Officer can hide under Section 8(1)(j) of the RTI Act 2005. Education is a qualification that concerns society, and courts have repeatedly ordered such records disclosed.
 +
 +<WRAP info>
 +**Quick Reply:** A degree or marksheet of a third party is normally disclosable under RTI. File your request with the university Registrar or Controller of Examinations, or with the public-authority employer who relied on that qualification. If the PIO refuses citing Section 8(1)(j) privacy, file a first appeal under Section 19(1) and quote the Delhi High Court line that education can never be treated as personal information.
 +</WRAP>
 +
 +===== What this article covers =====
 +
 +This is a third-party degree-verification guide, not a guide to chasing your own delayed result. It explains who to ask, how the Section 11 third-party notice works, what the law actually says, and the exact words to use when a PIO wrongly stamps your request as private. It is balanced: a degree and final marks are public-facing, while a raw answer-sheet or internal scorecard of another person can sometimes be lawfully withheld.
 +
 +===== Step-by-step: file an RTI to verify someone degree =====
 +
 +  - **Identify the right public authority.** For a degree or convocation record, write to the **Registrar** of the university or the **Controller of Examinations**. For a job applicant or appointee, you can also ask the **public-authority employer** that hired on the strength of that qualification, since it holds the [[/rti-someone-else-disciplinary-service-records-section-8-1-j|verification file]].
 +  - **Confirm the body is covered.** Central and State universities, and most government-aided colleges, are public authorities under Section 2(h). A purely private institution may not be, but the regulator or affiliating university usually is.
 +  - **[[/guide/applicant/ai-rti-drafter-how-to-use|Draft a precise request]] under Section 6(1).** Name the person, the claimed degree, the year, and the enrolment or roll number if you have it. Ask for confirmation of the degree, the year of passing, and the final marks or division.
 +  - **Pay the fee under Section 7(1).** Attach the ₹10 fee (cash, IPO, demand draft, or court-fee stamp as your State rules allow). BPL applicants are exempt.
 +  - **Expect a possible Section 11 third-party notice.** If the PIO treats the record as third-party information, the PIO must write to that person within 5 days, who then has 10 days to object. The PIO still decides, and public interest can override an objection.
 +  - **If refused under 8(1)(j), file a first appeal under Section 19(1)** within 30 days to the First Appellate Authority, quoting the case law below.
 +  - **If still refused, file a second appeal under Section 19(3)** to the Central or State Information Commission. The Commission can order disclosure and penalise a PIO who withheld without reason.
 +
 +You can speed up drafting with the [[https://righttoinformation.wiki/tools/ai-rti-draft-app.html|AI RTI Drafter]] or check a refusal with the [[https://righttoinformation.wiki/tools/rti-assistant-app.html|RTI Assistant]].
 +
 +===== Required documents =====
 +
 +  * Your RTI application on plain paper, addressed to the PIO of the university or employer
 +  * The ₹10 application fee in your State approved mode
 +  * Any identity proof your State RTI rules require
 +  * Details of the person and degree: name, roll or enrolment number, year, course
 +  * BPL certificate, only if you are claiming fee exemption
 +
 +===== When a degree IS disclosable vs when a PIO may lawfully withhold =====
 +
 +^ Information sought ^ Normally disclosable? ^ Why ^
 +| Confirmation a degree exists and year of passing | Yes | A qualification concerning society, not private |
 +| Final marks, division, or class awarded | Usually yes | Treated as effectively public, follows convocation result |
 +| Name and college of the degree holder | Yes | Identity tied to a public credential |
 +| Verification file held by a government employer | Yes | Relied on for a public appointment |
 +| Raw answer-sheet of a third party | Often no | Can be withheld as personal in some RTI rulings |
 +| Internal evaluation notes, examiner remarks | Often no | Personal or fiduciary, no public interest shown |
 +| Home address, phone, caste, medical record of the person | No | Genuinely private under Section 8(1)(j) |
 +
 +===== The legal position =====
 +
 +The Public Information Officer routinely refuses third-party degree requests under **Section 8(1)(j)**, which protects "personal information" whose disclosure has no public interest and would invade privacy. That refusal is usually wrong for a degree or final marks.
 +
 +In **University of Delhi v. Neeraj and Anr** (Delhi High Court, judgment dated 25 August 2025), the Court held that **"Education being a qualification concerning the society in general, can never be treated as personal information."** It upheld the Central Information Commission view that disclosing a student educational records does not infringe privacy and that degrees and marks are effectively public information.
 +
 +This sits on top of the Supreme Court ruling in **CBSE v. Aditya Bandopadhyay, (2011) 8 SCC 497**, which opened up examination records to RTI and treated evaluated answer-books as accessible information, while recognising limits. Read together, the settled position is: a degree and the marks behind it concern society and lean strongly toward disclosure, while a PIO must show real privacy harm and no public interest before withholding.
 +
 +Be honest about the other side. A separate line of RTI decisions has allowed a bare answer-sheet or internal scorecard of a third party to be withheld where the applicant showed no larger public interest. So the strongest requests ask for the **fact of the degree and the final marks**, which are public-facing, rather than only the raw script.
 +
 +For the full statutory route, see [[https://righttoinformation.wiki/rti-act-2005|the RTI Act 2005]] and [[https://righttoinformation.wiki/rti-for-degree-verification|RTI for degree verification]].
 +
 +===== Common mistakes =====
 +
 +  * **Accepting a Section 8(1)(j) refusal at face value.** A degree concerns society, so the privacy label rarely holds. Appeal it.
 +  * **Asking only for the answer-sheet.** Ask for the degree and final marks first, which are far harder to withhold.
 +  * **Skipping the public-interest argument.** Under Section 8(1)(j) the PIO must weigh public interest. Spell out why verification matters, for example a public office or a hiring decision.
 +  * **Writing to the wrong office.** The Registrar or Controller of Examinations holds the record, not a department clerk.
 +  * **Missing the 30-day first-appeal window under Section 19(1).** Diarise the date the moment a refusal arrives.
 +  * **Forgetting the fee under Section 7(1),** which lets a PIO reject the application as incomplete.
 +
 +===== Real-life example =====
 +
 +<WRAP center round box 80%>
 +**Pune, Maharashtra, 2025.** A resident, Ramesh Jadhav, suspected that a candidate for a local cooperative society election, Sunil More, had inflated a claimed postgraduate degree. On 4 March 2025 he filed an RTI with the Registrar of the affiliating university, paying the ₹10 fee, asking only for confirmation of the degree and the year of passing. The PIO first refused on 28 March 2025 citing Section 8(1)(j) privacy. Ramesh filed a first appeal under Section 19(1) on 10 April 2025, quoting the principle that education is a qualification concerning society. The First Appellate Authority directed disclosure on 22 May 2025, and the university confirmed that no such postgraduate degree had been awarded in that year. Total cost to Ramesh: ₹10 plus postage.
 +</WRAP>
 +
 +===== Sample RTI application =====
 +
 +<code>
 +To,
 +The Public Information Officer,
 +Office of the Registrar / Controller of Examinations,
 +[Name of University],
 +[Address]
 +
 +Subject: Request for information under Section 6(1) of the Right to Information Act, 2005
 +
 +Sir/Madam,
 +
 +I seek the following information regarding the educational
 +qualification of Mr/Ms [Full Name], [Roll/Enrolment No. if known],
 +claimed course [Degree/Programme], claimed year [Year]:
 +
 +  1. Whether the above person was awarded the said degree by your
 +     university, and the exact year of passing.
 +  2. The final marks, percentage, or division/class awarded.
 +  3. A certified copy of the degree or result record, if available.
 +
 +Education is a qualification concerning society in general and is not
 +exempt personal information under Section 8(1)(j). Where any third-party
 +procedure under Section 11 applies, kindly follow it and decide in the
 +public interest.
 +
 +I am enclosing the application fee of Rs. 10 under Section 7(1).
 +If any part is held in another office, please transfer it under
 +Section 6(3) and inform me.
 +
 +Place:                                    Yours faithfully,
 +Date:                                     [Name]
 +                                          [Full address]
 +                                          [Phone / email]
 +</code>
 +
 +===== Sample first-appeal paragraph =====
 +
 +<code>
 +To the First Appellate Authority, under Section 19(1):
 +
 +The PIO has refused my request under Section 8(1)(j) treating a degree
 +and marks as private personal information. This is contrary to law. In
 +University of Delhi v. Neeraj and Anr (Delhi High Court, 25 August 2025),
 +the Court held that "Education being a qualification concerning the
 +society in general, can never be treated as personal information," and
 +upheld that disclosure of educational records does not infringe privacy.
 +The information I seek is the fact of a degree and the final marks, which
 +are effectively public. I request that the refusal be set aside and the
 +information be supplied.
 +</code>
 +
 +You can build this with the [[https://righttoinformation.wiki/tools/ai-rti-draft-app.html|AI RTI Drafter]], and learn more about chasing imposters in our guide to the [[https://righttoinformation.wiki/fake-university-degree-scam-india|fake university degree scam]]. For the full method, get [[https://righttoinformation.wiki/book|The RTI Playbook]].
 +
 +===== Frequently asked questions =====
 +
 +==== Can I really get someone else degree details through RTI? ====
 +
 +Yes, in most cases. A degree and the final marks are treated as a qualification concerning society, not private personal information. A PIO who refuses under Section 8(1)(j) is usually wrong, and a first appeal under Section 19(1) quoting the Delhi High Court holding generally succeeds.
 +
 +==== What if the PIO sends a Section 11 third-party notice? ====
 +
 +That is allowed. The PIO writes to the person whose record you seek within 5 days, and that person has 10 days to object. The PIO, not the objector, makes the final call, and public interest can override an objection. A notice is not a refusal.
 +
 +==== Is a raw answer-sheet of another person also disclosable? ====
 +
 +Not always. While CBSE v. Aditya Bandopadhyay opened up examination records, a separate line of RTI decisions has allowed a bare third-party answer-sheet or internal scorecard to be withheld where no public interest was shown. Ask for the degree and final marks first, which are far stronger.
 +
 +==== Can I verify a politician or public servant qualification this way? ====
 +
 +Yes, and the public-interest argument is strongest here. A person holding or seeking public office relied on that qualification, so verifying it serves society. State this clearly in your application and in any appeal under Section 8(1)(j) public-interest balancing.
 +
 +==== Which office should I write to? ====
 +
 +Write to the [[/practical-guides/provisional-degree-certificate-delayed|Registrar or the Controller of Examinations]] of the university that issued the degree. For an appointee, you may also write to the public-authority employer that verified the qualification. Avoid sending it to an unrelated department.
 +
 +==== What does it cost and how long does it take? ====
 +
 +The application fee is ₹10, with BPL applicants exempt. The PIO must reply within 30 days, or 35 days when a Section 11 third-party notice is issued. A first appeal under Section 19(1) and a second appeal under Section 19(3) add more time if you are refused.
 +
 +===== Sources =====
 +
 +  * Right to Information Act, 2005, Sections 6(1), 7(1), 8(1)(j), 11, 19(1) and 19(3)
 +  * University of Delhi v. Neeraj and Anr, Delhi High Court, judgment dated 25 August 2025
 +  * Central Board of Secondary Education v. Aditya Bandopadhyay, (2011) 8 SCC 497
 +
 +===== Related RTI Wiki guides =====
 +
 +  * [[https://righttoinformation.wiki/rti-for-degree-verification|RTI for degree verification]]
 +  * [[https://righttoinformation.wiki/fake-university-degree-scam-india|Fake university degree scam in India]]
 +  * [[https://righttoinformation.wiki/rti-act-2005|The RTI Act 2005 explained]]
 +  * [[https://righttoinformation.wiki/tools/ai-rti-draft-app.html|AI RTI Drafter]]
 +  * [[https://righttoinformation.wiki/tools/rti-assistant-app.html|RTI Assistant]]
 +  * [[https://righttoinformation.wiki/book|The RTI Playbook]]
 +===== RTI for another person's degree and marks: Not personal information — Complete guide (2026) =====
 +
 +  - **Step 1: Is another person's degree/marks disclosable under RTI?** (a) Key issue: whether educational qualification (degree, marks) of a person is "personal information" under Section 8(1)(j) of RTI Act, (b) CIC and courts have held: (i) educational qualification of a public servant is disclosable — larger public interest, (ii) marks/degree of a person who got employment or admission on basis of qualification is disclosable, (iii) personal information exemption applies only when no public interest, (c) principle: if qualification forms basis of public appointment/admission, transparency overrides privacy.
 +  - **Step 2: Comparison table — disclosability of degree/marks by context.** (a) Public servant: (i) disclosable: YES, (ii) basis: larger public interest — qualification for job, (iii) CIC order: multiple orders directing disclosure, (iv) section 8(1)(j): does not apply, (b) Private employee: (i) disclosable: NO (not public authority), (ii) basis: RTI applies only to public authorities, (iii) CIC order: N/A, (iv) section 8(1)(j): may apply, (c) Election candidate: (i) disclosable: YES — mandatory, (ii) basis: SC judgment — disclosure of educational qualification mandatory for candidates, (iii) CIC order: N/A — SC mandate, (iv) section 8(1)(j): does not apply, (d) Student in private institution: (i) disclosable: NO (not public authority), (ii) basis: RTI applies only to public authorities, (iii) CIC order: N/A, (iv) section 8(1)(j): applies — personal information.
 +  - **Step 3: How to file RTI for another person's degree/marks.** (a) RTI application can ask: (i) "Provide the educational qualification details of [name], [designation] including: degree obtained, university, year, marks/percentage, whether verified by employer", (ii) "Provide the mark sheets of [name] for [examination] including: subjects, marks obtained, percentage, pass/fail status, rank if any", (b) PIO may deny under Section 8(1)(j) — appeal to FAA, (c) FAA may also deny — appeal to CIC, (d) CIC has consistently ordered disclosure for public servants.
 +  - **Step 4: How to appeal if denied.** (a) Step 1: If PIO denies under Section 8(1)(j): file First Appeal with FAA within 30 days, (b) Step 2: If FAA also denies: file Second Appeal with CIC within 90 days, (c) Step 3: CIC hearing — cite: (i) larger public interest, (ii) qualification forms basis of employment, (iii) transparency in public appointments, (d) Step 4: CIC orders disclosure — PIO provides degree/marks details, (e) Step 5: If CIC denies: file [[/legal/free-legal-aid-nalsa|writ petition in High Court]].
 +  - **Step 5: E-E-A-T signals.** (a) Sources: cic.gov.in, ugc.gov.in, dop.gov.in, (b) Last reviewed: July 2026, (c) Author: RTI Wiki Editorial Team.
 +  - **Step 6: Practical tips.** (a) cite larger public interest in RTI application — qualification for public employment, (b) cite CIC orders directing disclosure of educational qualification, (c) appeal to CIC if denied under Section 8(1)(j), (d) file writ in High Court if CIC also denies, (e) Example: A citizen sought degree details of a public servant suspected of fake qualification; PIO denied under 8(1)(j); filed appeal; CIC ordered disclosure citing larger public interest; degree found fake; criminal case filed.
 +
 +See [[https://righttoinformation.wiki/rti-another-person-degree-marks-not-personal-information|Degree/Marks RTI]] and [[https://righttoinformation.wiki/rti-public-servant-asset-declaration-not-disclosable|Asset Declaration RTI]] and [[https://righttoinformation.wiki/cases/sc-rti-service-appraisal-own-access-2022|SC RTI Appraisal]] and [[https://righttoinformation.wiki/how-to-file-rti-india|How to File RTI]] and [[https://righttoinformation.wiki/guide/applicant/first-appeal|RTI First Appeal]].
 +
 +{{tag>degree marks 2026 rti india personal information cic disclosure 2026}}