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Section 22: Act to have overriding effect

Right to Information Act, 2005 • Official Statutory Text & Practice Guide

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Section 21 All 31 Sections of Right to Information Act, 2005 Section 23

Legal Commentary & Landmark Judgments: Section 22

Section 22 enacts a paramount non-obstante clause ensuring that the provisions of the RTI Act override anything inconsistent therewith contained in the Official Secrets Act, 1923, and any other law for the time being in force or any instrument having effect by virtue of any law.

  • Sweeping Non-Obstante Supersession: The provisions of the Act shall have effect notwithstanding anything inconsistent therewith contained in the Official Secrets Act, 1923, and any other law for the time being in force or in any instrument having effect by virtue of any law other than this Act.
  • Abrogation of Pre-Existing Secrecy Statutes and Subordinate Instruments: Subordinates colonial and post-independence secrecy provisions—such as Section 5 of the Official Secrets Act, banking confidentiality clauses, departmental codes, service conduct rules, and administrative oaths of secrecy—to the transparency mandate of the RTI Act.
  • Harmonization with Internal Exemption Scheme: While Section 22 overrides external statutory secrecy provisions, it does not nullify the internal exemption architecture of Section 8 and Section 9 of the RTI Act itself; an exemption from disclosure must be anchored strictly within the four corners of the RTI Act.
Key Landmark Precedents:
  • Reserve Bank of India v. Jayantilal N. Mistry (2016) 3 SCC 525: A 2-Judge Bench of the Supreme Court held that Section 22 overrides the confidentiality provisions in Section 28 of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949 and Section 45NB of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934; the RBI cannot withhold bank inspection reports and NPA default lists by sheltering under external banking secrecy laws.
  • Central Public Information Officer, Supreme Court of India v. Subhash Chandra Agarwal (2020) 5 SCC 481: The Constitution Bench held that Section 22 overrides inconsistent court rules or administrative regulations, affirming that access to official judicial administrative information is governed primarily by the transparency mandates of the RTI Act.
  • Institute of Chartered Accountants of India v. Shaunak H. Satya (2011) 8 SCC 781: The Supreme Court held that confidentiality provisions in regulations framed under the Chartered Accountants Act, 1949 yield to Section 22, and information can be denied only if covered by the express exemptions under Section 8.
Courtroom Practice & Strategic Litigation Guidance:

Whenever a public authority resists disclosure by invoking external confidentiality clauses—such as Section 138 of the Income Tax Act, Section 44 of the SBI Act, or state police manuals—raise Section 22 as a complete statutory rebuttal. External secrecy laws are rendered inoperative to the extent of inconsistency with the RTI Act, and the public authority must independently satisfy the specific exemption criteria under Section 8(1) to withhold records.

Section 21 All 31 Sections of Right to Information Act, 2005 Section 23