After Three-Year RTI Battle, CIC Pulls Up MCD Over Stray Dog Information

The Central Information Commission (CIC) has imposed a ₹25,000 penalty on the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) for what it described as a " determined and deliberate resistance " to disclosing information related to stray dog management under the Right to Information (RTI) Act. The commission also awarded ₹10,000 compensation to the RTI applicant after a three-year legal battle.

The case originated from an RTI application filed in December 2022 by Akshay Kumar Malhotra, who sought details on animal welfare organisations engaged by the MCD, stray dog sterilisation and vaccination programmes , dog shelters, complaints received, monitoring mechanisms and expenditure of public funds.

In its order, the CIC observed that MCD officials repeatedly failed to provide complete information and instead directed the applicant to approach NGOs carrying out the work. The commission held that such records remained the responsibility of the public authority and should have been disclosed.

The CIC noted that much of the requested information should already have been available under the RTI Act's provisions for proactive disclosure . It also referred to the Supreme Court's May 19, 2026 judgment on stray dog management, which emphasised the need for transparent and verifiable data to monitor Animal Birth Control (ABC) programmes .

The commission directed the MCD commissioner to place key records in the public domain, including details of sterilisation and vaccination drives, payments made to NGOs , contracts, shelter and kennel information, complaints received and action taken reports.

The CIC further took note of allegations that the applicant faced intimidation after his personal details were shared with third parties. It said proactive disclosure would reduce such risks while improving transparency, accountability and public oversight of stray dog management programmes.