Indian Court to Hear Petition for Added Information Disclosure by Patent Office

The Delhi High Court on Aug. 6 admitted a writ petition arguing that government agencies such as the Indian Patent Office come under the remit of the Right to Information Act, which obligates them to provide any information sought by any member of the public.

The petition (Writ Petition (Civil) No. 4676 of 2014), filed by high profile intellectual property rights expert Dr Shamnad Basheer, said government agencies must not be allowed to hide behind sector-specific legislations such as the Indian Patents Act whose information dispensation provisions are weaker than those under the Right to Information Act (“RTI Act”).

“Government ...