Court of Appeal upholds RTI Commission ruling in Uva education information case

Wednesday, 3 December 2025 04:50 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

The Court of Appeal has affirmed a decision of the Right to Information Commission (RTIC), rejecting an appeal filed by Hewa Baddage Gunaratne in relation to an information request made to the Department of Education in the Uva Province.

The judgment, delivered on 26 November in CA RTI 01/2020 Hewa Baddage Gunaratne v Education Department (Uva Province), was issued by Justice R. Gurusinghe, with Justice S. Premachandra agreeing.

Gunaratne had sought information from the Department of Education under the RTI Act, requesting documents connected to his pension and related matters. He claimed that the Department had not provided adequate responses and that the lack of information had affected his ability to obtain his pension, prompting him to appeal to the RTIC.

Before the Commission, the Department of Education stated that it had released the information in its possession, including his letter of retirement. The Department further noted that other documents relevant to his pension were held by different public authorities, and that Gunaratne had applied for and obtained those documents from the respective institutions through the RTI process.

The RTIC recorded this position and concluded that no further information remained to be released by the Department of Education. The Commission nevertheless directed that an inquiry be held into the delay in responding to Gunaratne’s request. That inquiry was conducted, and action was taken against the officer responsible for the delay, with the inquiry report sent to him.

Gunaratne subsequently appealed to the Court of Appeal seeking to overturn the RTIC’s determination. In its judgment, the Court upheld the Commission’s findings and declined to intervene.

Justice Gurusinghe said: “In the circumstances, we see no reason to interfere with the decision of the Commission,” affirming that the RTIC had acted within its mandate in concluding the matter and directing an inquiry into the delay.