Authority: Appellate Authority under the RTI Act, Securities and Exchange Board of India

Order Date: November 02, 2026

Case Overview

The appeal was filed by Mohammad Akbar, an investor/claimant of PACL Limited (Certificate Numbers U016350xxx and U016357xxx), against the response provided by the CPIO, SEBI, Mumbai to an RTI application dated September 02, 2026. The appellant's claim application for a refund in the PACL matter could not be processed because he had inadvertently selected 'Yes' for the 'Land allotted' field in his claim form, despite not having been allotted any land by PACL Limited. Through his RTI application, the appellant sought detailed procedural information on seven specific points, including whether such an error could be corrected, the complete procedure for correction and reprocessing of the claim, the relevant rules or circulars permitting such correction, and the specific authority or department to be approached for this purpose.

The respondent (CPIO, SEBI) responded on September 22, 2026, stating that the information sought was not available with SEBI. SEBI advised the appellant that all communication regarding refund status is handled by the Justice (Retd.) R.M. Lodha Committee and directed him to approach that Committee. SEBI also informed that details regarding PACL matters, including Public Notices, Press Releases, Status Reports, and FAQs, are available on its website.

The appellant filed this appeal on October 08, 2026 (Reg. No. SEBIH/A/E/26/00382), on the ground that he was provided incomplete, misleading, or false information.

The Appellate Authority, in its reasoning, concurred with the respondent's stance. It cited a precedent from the Hon'ble Central Information Commission (CIC) in the matter of Sh. Pattipati Rama Murthy vs. CPIO, SEBI (Decision dated July 8, 2013), which held that if information is not in the possession of a public authority, the CPIO cannot invent it. The Authority noted that the responsibility for the disposal of PACL's properties and repayment to investors is entrusted to the Justice (Retd.) R. M. Lodha Committee, constituted pursuant to a February 2, 2016, order of the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India.

Final Outcome

The appeal was dismissed. The Appellate Authority found no deficiency in the respondent's response and upheld the decision that the requested information is not available with SEBI. The final ruling confirms that the appellant must seek resolution for his claim correction and reprocessing directly from the Justice R.M. Lodha Committee, utilizing the public resources (FAQs, Status Reports) already provided on SEBI's website.

Topics: RTI Appeal, Investor Refund Process