Right to Information Law

Lesson
LESSON 14

Right to Information Law

14
KEY CONCEPTS
n Public Authority n Information n Request for obtaining Information n Chief Information Commissioner
n Information Commissioners n Competent Authority

Learning Objectives
To understand:
 Citizen’s Right to Information
 Procedure for obtaining information under Right to Information Act (RTI Act)
 Authorities under RTI Act and their roles and responsibilities
 Information exempted from disclosure
 Powers of Information commission(s)
 Appellate authorities under RTI Act
 Role of Central/State Government

Lesson Outline
 Introduction  Powers of Information Commissions
 Right to Know  Appellate Authorities
 The Right to Information (RTI) Act, 2005  Penalties
 Salient features of the Act  Jurisdiction of Courts
 Definitions  Lesson Round-Up
 Obligations of Public Authority  Glossary
 Designation of Public Information Officers  Test Yourself
(PIO)
 List of Further Readings and References
 Request for obtaining Information
 Duties of a PIO
 Exemption from disclosure
 Partial disclosure allowed
 Who is excluded?
 Information Commissions

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The Right to Information Act, 2005 is an Act to provide for setting out the practical regime of right to
information for citizens to secure access to information under the control of public authorities, in order
to promote transparency and accountability in the working of every public authority, the constitution
of a Central Information Commission and State Information Commissions and for matters connected
therewith or incidental thereto.

Regulatory Framework
l The Right to Information Act, 2005

Introduction
Throughout the world, RTI is seen by many as the key to strengthening participatory democracy and ensuring
more people-centred development. Nearly 70 countries around the world have now adopted comprehensive
Freedom of Information Acts to facilitate access to records held by government bodies and another fifty have
pending efforts. In India also, the Government enacted Right to Information (RTI) Act in 2005 which came into
force w.e.f. October 12, 2005.

RIGHT TO KNOW
Before dwelling on the RTI Act, 2005, mention should be made that case Reliance Petrochemicals Limited v.
Indian Express Newspapers, 1989 AIR 90 in which the Supreme Court read into Article 21 the right to know.
The Supreme Court held that right to know is a necessary ingredient of participatory democracy. In view of
transnational developments when distances are shrinking, international communities are coming together for
cooperation in various spheres and they are moving towards global perspective in various fields including
Human Rights, the expression “liberty” must receive an expanded meaning. The expression cannot be limited
to mere absence of bodily restraint. It is wide enough to expand to full range of rights including right to hold
a particular opinion and right to sustain and nurture that opinion. For sustaining and nurturing that opinion it
becomes necessary to receive information. Article 21 confers on all persons a right to know which include a right
to receive information.
It may be pointed out that the right to impart and receive information is a species of the right to freedom of
speech and expression. Article 19(1) (a) of our Constitution guarantees to all citizens freedom of speech and
expression. At the same time, Article 19(2) permits the State to make any law in so far as such law imposes
reasonable restrictions on the exercise of the rights conferred by Article 19(1) (a) of the Constitution in the interest
of sovereignty and integrity of India, the security of the State, friendly relations with foreign States, public order,
decency, morality, contempt of court, defamation and incitement of offence.
Thus, a citizen has a right to receive information and that right is derived from the concept of freedom of
speech and expression comprised in Article 19(1) (a). The State is not only under an obligation to respect the
Fundamental Rights of the citizens, but it is equally under an obligation to ensure conditions under which these
rights can meaningfully and effectively be enjoyed by one and all.
Right to freedom of speech and expression in Article 19 (1)(a) carries with it the right to propagate and circulate
one’s views and opinions subject to reasonable restrictions as mentioned above. The prerequisite for enjoying
this right is knowledge and information. Information adds something “new to our awareness and removes
vagueness of our ideas”.

THE RIGHT TO INFORMATION (RTI) ACT, 2005

The Right to Information Act, 2005 provides an effective framework for effectuating the right to information
recognized under Article 19 of the Constitution. It may be pointed out that the Right to Information Bill was
passed by the Lok Sabha on May 11, 2005 and by the Rajya Sabha on May 12, 2005 and received the assent of

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the President on June 15, 2005. The Act considered as watershed legislation, is the most significant milestone
in the history of Right to Information movement in India allowing transparency and autonomy and access to
accountability.

SALIENT FEATURES OF THE ACT

Objective
As stated above, the RTI Act confers on all citizens a right to information. The Act provides for setting out the
practical regime of right to information for citizens to secure access to information held by public authorities to
promote transparency and accountability in the working of every public authority.

Case Law
In the case of Anjali Bhardwaj and Others Vs. Union of India and Others in Writ Petition (Civil) No. 436 of 2018
Judgement dated February 15, 2019 the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India in Paragraph 18, 19 and 68 observed
that there is a definite link between right to information and good governance. In fact, the RTI Act itself lays
emphasis on good governance and recognises that it is one of the objective which the said Act seeks to
achieve. The RTI Act would reveal that four major elements/objectives required to ensure good governance
are:
(i) greater transparency in functioning of public authorities;

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(ii) informed citizenry for promotion of partnership between citizens and the Government in decision
making process;
(iii) improvement in accountability and performance of the Government; and
(iv) reduction in corruption in the Government departments.

The right to information, therefore, is not only a constitutional right of the citizens but there is now a legislation
in the form of RTI Act which provides a legal regime for people to exercise their fundamental right to information
and to access information from public authorities. The very preamble of the Act captures the importance of this
democratic right which reads as “democracy requires an informed citizenry and transparency of information
which are vital to its functioning and also to contain corruption and to hold Governments and their instrumentalities
accountable to the governed.”
This Act is enacted not only to sub-serve and ensure freedom of speech. On proper implementation, it has the
potential to bring about good governance which is an integral part of any vibrant democracy. Attaining good
governance is also one of the visions of the Constitution.

Question: Which of the given is provided with the Right to know under RTI Act, 2005?

Options: (A) Residents

(B) Peoples

(C) All persons having age of atleast 21 years

(D) Citizens

Answer: (D)

DEFINITIONS
The meaning of important terms has been incorporated under section 2 of the RTI Act. These have been
discussed herein below:
Public Authority
“Public authority” means any authority or body or institution of self-government established or constituted –
– By or under the Constitution;
– By any other law made by Parliament;
– By and other law made by State Legislature;
– By notification issued or order made by the appropriate Government,
and includes any–
– body owned, controlled or substantially financed;
– non-Government organisation substantially financed,
directly or indirectly by funds provided by the appropriate Government [Section 2(h)]

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Record
“Record” includes–
(a) any document, manuscript and file;
(b) any microfilm, microfiche and facsimile copy of a document;
(c) any reproduction of image or images embodied in such microfilm (whether enlarged or not); and
(d) any other material produced by a computer or any other device; [Section 2(i)]
Information
“Information” means any material in any form, including records, documents, memos, e-mails, opinions, advices,
press releases, circulars, orders, logbooks, contracts, reports, papers, samples, models, data material held in
any electronic form and information relating to any private body which can be accessed by a public authority
under any other law for the time being in force. [Section 2(f)]
Right to Information
“Right to information” means the right to information accessible under this Act which is held by or under the
control of any public authority and includes the right to–
(i) taking notes, extracts, or certified copies of documents or records;
(ii) inspection of work, documents, records;
(iii) taking certified samples of material;
(iv) obtaining information in the form of diskettes, floppies, tapes, video cassettes or in any other electronic
mode or through printouts where such information is stored in a computer or in any other device;
[Section 2( j)]
Section 3 of the Act provides that subject to the provisions of this Act, all citizens shall have the right to information.
Third Party
“Third party” means a person other than the citizen making a request for information and includes a public
authority. [Section 2(n)]

OBLIGATIONS OF PUBLIC AUTHORITY

Every public authority under the Act has been entrusted with a duty to maintain records and publish manuals,
rules, regulations, instructions, etc. in its possession as prescribed under the Act. [Section 4(1)(a)]
According to Section 4(1)(a), every public authority shall maintain all its records duly catalogued and indexed
in a manner and the form which facilitates the right to information under this Act and ensure that all records
that are appropriate to be computerised are, within a reasonable time and subject to availability of resources,
computerised and connected through a network all over the country on different systems so that access to such
records is facilitated.
As per Section 4(1)(b), every public authority has to publish within one hundred and twenty days of the enactment
of this Act:
– The particulars of its organization, functions and duties;
– The powers and duties of its officers and employees;
– the procedure followed in its decision making process, including channels of supervision and
accountability;
– the norms set by it for the discharge of its functions;

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– the rules, regulations, instructions, manuals and records used by its employees for discharging its
functions;
– a statement of the categories of the documents held by it or under its control;
– the particulars of any arrangement that exists for consultation with, or representation by the members
of the public, in relation to the formulation of policy or implementation thereof;
– a statement of the boards, councils, committees and other bodies consisting of two or more persons
constituted by it. Additionally, information as to whether the meetings of these are open to the public,
or the minutes of such meetings are accessible to the public;
– a directory of its officers and employees;
– the monthly remuneration received by each of its officers and employees, including the system of
compensation as provided in its regulations;
– the budget allocated to each of its agency, indicating the particulars of all plans, proposed expenditures
and reports on disbursements made;
– the manner of execution of subsidy programmes, including the amounts allocated and the details and
beneficiaries of such programmes;
– particulars of recipients of concessions, permits or authorizations granted by it;
– details of the information available to, or held by it, reduced in an electronic form;
– the particulars of facilities available to citizens for obtaining information, including the working hours of
a library or reading room, if maintained for public use;
– the names, designations and other particulars of the Public Information Officers;
– Such other information as may be prescribed; and thereafter update the publications every year.
and thereafter update these publications every year.
According to section 2(1)(c) of the Act, every public authority shall publish all relevant facts while formulating
important policies or announcing the decisions which affect public.
According to section 2(1)(d) of the Act, every public authority shall provide reasons for its administrative or quasi-
judicial decisions to affected persons.

DESIGNATION OF PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICERS (PIO)

Every public authority has to–
– Designate in all administrative units or offices Central or State Public Information Officers to provide
information to persons who have made a request for the information.
– Designate at each sub-divisional level or sub-district level Central Assistant or State Assistant Public
Information Officers to receive the applications for information or appeals for forwarding the same to
the Central or State Public Information Officers.
– No reason to be given by the person making request for information except those that may be necessary
for contacting him. (Section 5)

REQUEST FOR OBTAINING INFORMATION

The Act specifies the manner in which requests may be made by a citizen to the authority for obtaining the
information. It also provides for transferring the request to the other concerned public authority who may hold
the information.

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Application is to be submitted in writing or electronically, with prescribed fee, to Public Information Officer (PIO).

Note:
— Time taken for calculation and intimation of fees excluded from the time frame.
— No action on application for 30 days is a deemed refusal.
— No fee for delayed response.

Example: A public authority received RTI application from H. The information sought for concerns the life or
liberty of J. How much time is provided for providing information to this RTI application?
Answer: If the information sought for concerns the life or liberty of a person, the same shall be provided
within forty-eight hours of the receipt of the request.

DUTIES OF A PIO
PIO shall deal with requests from persons seeking information and where the request cannot be made in writing,
to render reasonable assistance to the person to reduce the same in writing. If the information requested for
is held by or its subject matter is closely connected with the function of another public authority, the PIO shall
transfer, within 5 days, the request to that other public authority and inform the applicant immediately.
PIO may seek the assistance of any other officer for the proper discharge of his/her duties. PIO, on receipt
of a request, shall as expeditiously as possible, and in any case within 30 days of the receipt of the request,
either provide the information on payment of such fee as may be prescribed or reject the request for any of the
reasons specified in Section 8 or Section 9.
Where the information requested for concerns the life or liberty of a person, the same shall be provided within
forty-eight hours of the receipt of the request. If the PIO fails to give decision on the request within the period
specified, he shall be deemed to have refused the request.
Where a request has been rejected, the PIO shall communicate to the requester –
(i) the reasons for such rejection,
(ii) the period within which an appeal against such rejection may be preferred, and

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(iii) the particulars of the Appellate Authority.

PIO shall provide information in the form in which it is sought unless it would disproportionately divert the
resources of the Public Authority or would be detrimental to the safety or preservation of the record in question.
If allowing partial access, the PIO shall give a notice to the applicant, informing:
– that only part of the record requested, after severance of the record containing information which is
exempt from disclosure, is being provided;
– the reasons for the decision, including any findings on any material question of fact, referring to the
material on which those findings were based;
– the name and designation of the person giving the decision;
– the details of the fees calculated by him or her and the amount of fee which the applicant is required to
deposit; and
– his or her rights with respect to review of the decision regarding non-disclosure of part of the information,
the amount of fee charged or the form of access provided.
If information sought has been supplied by third party or is treated as confidential by that third party, the PIO
shall give a written notice to the third party within 5 days from the receipt of the request.
Third party must be given a chance to make a representation before the PIO within 10 days from the date of
receipt of such notice. (Sections 5,7,10 &11)

Case Law
Hon’ble Supreme Court of India in Central Board of Secondary Education and Anr vs. Aditya Bandopadhyay
and Ors., (Civil Appeal No.6454 of 2011, Judgment dated August 9, 2011) observed that “Indiscriminate and
impractical demands or directions under RTI Act for disclosure of all and sundry information (unrelated to
transparency and accountability in the functioning of public authorities and eradication of corruption) would
be counterproductive as it will adversely affect the efficiency of the administration and result in the executive
getting bogged down with the non-productive work of collecting and furnishing information. The Act should
not be allowed to be misused or abused, to become a tool to obstruct the national development and
integration, or to destroy the peace, tranquillity and harmony among its citizens. Nor should it be converted
into a tool of oppression or intimidation of honest officials striving to do their duty.
Further, the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India observed that the RTI Act provides access to all information that
is available and existing. If a public authority has any information in the form of data or analysed data, or
abstracts, or statistics, an applicant may access such information, subject to the exemptions in section 8 of
the Act. But where the information sought is not a part of the record of a public authority, and where such
information is not required to be maintained under any law or the rules or regulations of the public authority,
the Act does not cast an obligation upon the public authority, to collect or collate such non-available
information and then furnish it to an applicant. A public authority is also not required to furnish information
which require drawing of inferences and/or making of assumptions. It is also not required to provide ‘advice’
or ‘opinion’ to an applicant, nor required to obtain and furnish any ‘opinion’ or ‘advice’ to an applicant.
Furthermore, the Supreme Court inter alia has observed that the right to access information does not extend
beyond the period during which the examining body is expected to retain the answer-books. In the case of
CBSE, the answer-books are required to be maintained for a period of three months and thereafter they are
liable to be disposed of/destroyed. Some other examining bodies are required to keep the answer- books for a
period of six months. The fact that right to information is available in regard to answer-books does not mean that
answer-books will have to be maintained for any longer period than required under the rules and regulations of
the public authority. The obligation under the RTI Act is to make available or give access to existing information
or information which is expected to be preserved or maintained. If the rules and regulations governing the

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functioning of the respective public authority require preservation of the information for only a limited period,
the applicant for information will be entitled to such information only if he seeks the information when it is
available with the public authority.

EXEMPTION FROM DISCLOSURE

Certain categories of information have been exempted from disclosure under the Act. These are:

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Provided that the decisions of Council of Ministers, the reasons thereof, and the material on the basis of which
the decisions were taken shall be made public after the decision has been taken, and the matter is complete,
or over:
Provided further that those matters which come under the exemptions specified in this section shall not be
disclosed;
Provided that the information which cannot be denied to the Parliament or a State Legislature shall not be
denied to any person.

Example
In case of a war or invasion, revealing or giving out information about strategically placed troops and related
information, will be treated as information protected under section 8 of the Act. Such disclosure prejudicially
affects the sovereignty and integrity of India.

Example
A, blows a whistle against sand corruption. His identity should be kept a secret since there is an increased
risk to his safety and chances of violence against him increases. Such disclosure endangers his life and
physical safety.

Example
A court while passing an order states that a particular information in that order shall not be disclosed. Such
information shall fall under the disclosure by way of court order and would lead to contempt if not adhered to.

Case Law
Kayalvizhi vs. CPIO, Office of the Income Tax Officer, Ward-1 (19.10.2022 - CIC) : (2022)
In this case, the application was filed since the Appellant has sought income related details of her brother
and her mother in response to averred RTI Application(s) which impinges on the privacy of the concerned
third parties and therefore, the information has been denied to her under Section 8(1)( j) of RTI Act. Further,
the other issue raised by the Appellant in the instant Appeal pertains to her family dispute which cannot be
redressed from the RTI platform. The appeal was denied and it was observed that -
“....in our opinion, would indicate that personal records, including name, address, physical, mental
and psychological status, marks obtained, grades and answer sheets, are all treated as personal
information……”
“…….Such personal information is entitled to protection from unwarranted invasion of privacy and conditional
access is available when stipulation of larger public interest is satisfied.....”

Question: NCLT forbids an information to be shared under RTI Act, 2005.

Is the information exempted under Right to Information Act, 2005?
Answer: Yes, Information which has been expressly forbidden by any court or tribunal or the disclosure of
which may constitute contempt of court are exmepted.

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Rejection of Request
The Public Information Officer has been empowered to reject a request for information where an infringement
of a copyright subsisting in a person would be involved. (Section 9)

PARTIAL DISCLOSURE ALLOWED

Under Section 10 of the RTI Act, only that part of the record which does not contain any information which is
exempt from disclosure and which can reasonably be severed from any part that contains exempt information,
may be provided.
As per Section 10 of the Act if the request for access to information is rejected on the ground that it is in relation
to the information which is exempt from disclosure, in that event access may be provided to that part of the
record which does not contain any information which is exempt from disclosure under this Act and which can be
reasonably severed from any part that contains exempt information.

Case Law
Chief Information Commissioner vs. High Court of Gujarat and Ors. (04.03.2020 - SC) : (2020)4SCC702
In this case, an appeal was filed with regards to the right of a third party to apply for certified copies to
be obtained from the High Court by invoking the provisions of Right to Information Act without resorting to
Gujarat High Court Rules prescribed by the High Court. Court observed that-
“We do not find any merit in the above submission and that such cumbersome procedure has to be adopted
for furnishing the information/certified copies of the documents. When there is an effective machinery for
having access to the information or obtaining certified copies which, in our view, is a very simple procedure i.e.
filing of an application/affidavit with requisite court fee and stating the reasons for which the certified copies
are required, we do not find any justification for invoking Section 11 of the RTI Act and adopt a cumbersome
procedure. This would involve wastage of both time and fiscal resources which the preamble of the RTI Act
itself intends to avoid.”

WHO IS EXCLUDED?
The Act excludes Central Intelligence and Security agencies specified in the Second Schedule like IB, R&AW,
Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, Central Economic Intelligence Bureau, Directorate of Enforcement,
Narcotics Control Bureau, Aviation Research Centre, Special Frontier Force, BSF, CRPF, ITBP, CISF, NSG, Assam
Rifles, Special Service Bureau, Special Branch (CID), Andaman and Nicobar, the Crime Branch-CID- CB, Dadra
and Nagar Haveli and Special Branch, Lakshadweep Police. Agencies specified by the State Governments
through a Notification will also be excluded.
The exclusion, however, is not absolute and these organizations have an obligation to provide information
pertaining to allegations of corruption and human rights violations. Further, information relating to allegations
of human rights violation shall be given only with the approval of the Central Information Commission within
forty- five days from the date of the receipt of request. (Section 24)

INFORMATION COMMISSIONS
The Act envisages constitution of Central Information Commission and the State information Commissions.

Central Information Commission

The Central Information Commission is to be constituted by the Central Government through a Gazette
Notification. The Central Information Commission consists of the Chief Information Commissioner and Central

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Information Commissioners not exceeding 10. These shall be appointed by the President of India on the
recommendations of a committee consisting of Prime Minister who is the Chairman of the Committee; the leader
of Opposition in the Lok Sabha; and a Union Cabinet Minister to be nominated by the Prime Minister.
The Chief Information Commissioner and Information Commissioners shall be persons of eminence in public life
with wide knowledge and experience in law, science and technology, social service, management, journalism,
mass media or administration and governance. CIC/IC shall not be a Member of Parliament or Member of the
Legislature of any State or Union Territory. He shall not hold any other office of profit or connected with any
political party or carrying on any business or pursuing any profession.
The general superintendence, direction and management of the affairs of the Commission vests in the Chief
Information Commissioner who shall be assisted by the Information Commissioners. Commission shall have its
Headquarters in Delhi. Other offices may be established in other parts of the country with the approval of the
Central Government. Commission will exercise its powers without being subjected to directions by any other
authority. (Section 12)

Term of office and conditions of service of Central Information Commission

(1) The Chief Information Commissioner shall hold office for such term as may be prescribed by the Central
Government and shall not be eligible for reappointment:
Provided that no Chief Information Commissioner shall hold office as such after he has attained the age
of sixty-five years.
(2) Every Information Commissioner shall hold office for such term as may be prescribed by the Central
Government or till he attains the age of sixty-five years, whichever is earlier, and shall not be eligible
for reappointment as such Information Commissioner:
Provided that every Information Commissioner shall, on vacating his office under this sub-section be
eligible for appointment as the Chief Information Commissioner in the manner specified in section 12:
Provided further that where the Information Commissioner is appointed as the Chief Information
Commissioner, his term of office shall not be more than five years in aggregate as the Information
Commissioner and the Chief Information Commissioner.
(3) The Chief Information Commissioner or an Information Commissioner shall before he enters upon his
office make and subscribe before the President or some other person appointed by him in that behalf,
an oath or affirmation according to the form set out for the purpose in the First Schedule.
(4) The Chief Information Commissioner or an Information Commissioner may, at any time, by writing under
his hand addressed to the President, resign from his office:
Provided that the Chief Information Commissioner or an Information Commissioner may be removed in
the manner specified under section 14.
(5) The salaries and allowances payable to and other terms and conditions of service of the Chief
Information Commissioner and the Information Commissioners shall be such as may be prescribed by
the Central Government:
Provided that the salaries, allowances and other conditions of service of the Chief Information
Commissioner or the Information Commissioners shall not be varied to their disadvantage after their
appointment:
Provided further that the Chief Information Commissioner and the Information Commissioners appointed
before the commencement of the Right to Information (Amendment) Act, 2019 shall continue to be
governed by the provisions of this Act and the rules made thereunder as if the Right to Information
(Amendment) Act, 2019 had not come into force.

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(6) The Central Government shall provide the Chief Information Commissioner and the Information
Commissioners with such officers and employees as may be necessary for the efficient performance of
their functions under this Act, and the salaries and allowances payable to, and the terms and conditions
of service of the officers and other employees appointed for the purpose of this Act shall be such as
may be prescribed.
Provided also that the salaries, allowances and other conditions of service of the Chief Information
Commissioner and the Information Commissioners shall not be varied to their disadvantage after their
appointment.

State Information Commission

The State Information Commission will be constituted by the State Government through a Gazette notification.
The State Information Commission consists of one State Chief Information Commissioner (SCIC) and not more than
10 State Information Commissioners (SIC). These shall be appointed by the Governor on the recommendations
of a committee consisting of the Chief Minister who is the Chairman of the committee. Other members include
the Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Assembly and one Cabinet Minister nominated by the Chief
Minister.

Term of office and conditions of service of State Information Commission

(1) The State Chief Information Commissioner shall hold office for such term as may be prescribed by the
Central Government and shall not be eligible for reappointment:
Provided that no State Chief Information Commissioner shall hold office as such after he has attained
the age of sixty-five years.
(2) Every State Information Commissioner shall hold office for such term as may be prescribed by the
Central Government or till he attains the age of sixty-five years, whichever is earlier, and shall not be
eligible for reappointment as such State Information Commissioner:
Provided that every State Information Commissioner shall, on vacating his office under this subsection,
be eligible for appointment as the State Chief Information Commissioner in the manner specified in
section 15(3):
Provided further that where the State Information Commissioner is appointed as the State Chief
Information Commissioner, his term of office shall not be more than five years in aggregate as the State
Information Commissioner and the State Chief Information Commissioner.
(3) The State Chief Information Commissioner or a State Information Commissioner, shall before he enters
upon his office make and subscribe before the Governor or some other person appointed by him in that
behalf, an oath or affirmation according to the form set out for the purpose in the First Schedule.
(4) The State Chief Information Commissioner or a State Information Commissioner may, at any time, by
writing under his hand addressed to the Governor, resign from his office:
Provided that the State Chief Information Commissioner or a State Information Commissioner may be
removed in the manner specified under section 17.
(5) The salaries and allowances payable to and other terms and conditions of service of the State Chief
Information Commissioner and the State Information Commissioners shall be such as may be prescribed
by the Central Government:
Provided that the salaries, allowances and other conditions of service of the State Chief Information
Commissioner and the State Information Commissioners shall not be varied to their disadvantage after
their appointment:

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Provided further that the State Chief Information Commissioner and the State Information Commissioners
appointed before the commencement of the Right to Information (Amendment) Act, 2019 shall continue
to be governed by the provisions of this Act and the rules made there under as if the Right to Information
(Amendment) Act, 2019 had not come into force.
(6) The State Government shall provide the State Chief Information Commissioner and the State Information
Commissioners with such officers and employees as may be necessary for the efficient performance of
their functions under this Act, and the salaries and allowances payable to and the terms and conditions
of service of the officers and other employees appointed for the purpose of this Act shall be such as
may be prescribed.

POWERS OF INFORMATION COMMISSIONS

The Central Information Commission/State Information Commission has a duty to receive complaints from any
person–

If the Commission feels satisfied, an enquiry may be initiated and while initiating an enquiry the Commission has
same powers as vested in a Civil Court.
The Central Information Commission or the State Information Commission during the inquiry of any complaint
under this Act may examine any record which is under the control of the public authority, and no such record
may be withheld from it on any grounds. (Section 18)

Example
‘A’ wants to seek the information pertaining to the functioning of a public welfare fund such as who is its head,
appointment of such head, expenses incurred by that particular authority in last financial year. ‘A’ received
a reply containing information about the functioning, the appointment of head and his name but not the
expenses incurred without and reasonable explanation.
‘A’ shall have the right to make complaint against incomplete information given to him .

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Example
‘A’ seeks the information pertaining the constitution of a committee. Such information was denied to him
without any reasonable justifications.
‘A’ has right to file a complaint against such unreasonable and unjustified refusal of information.

APPELLATE AUTHORITIES
Any person who does not receive a decision within the specified time or is aggrieved by a decision of the PIO
may file an appeal under the Act.

Burden of proving that denial of information was justified lies with the PIO. First Appeal shall be disposed of
within 30 days from the date of its receipt or within such extended period not exceeding a total of forty-five days
from the date of filing thereof, for reasons to be recorded in writing. Time period could be extended by 15 days
if necessary. (Section 19)

Example
An application by B, seeking information regarding a particular matter was denied by PIO. B filed an appeal
with the officer in rank to PIO regarding such rejection/denial of information. It is upon PIO to justify such
non-disclosure.

Case Law
N.N. Dhumane vs. PIO, Department of Posts (10.04.2018 - CIC) 2018 SCC OnLine CIC 21
In this case, the appellant was told that her pension for month of March 2017 was held up for want of
Aadhaar linking up along with 55 other pensioners who were former employees of this public authority; she
filed RTI application about ‘linking-up of Aadhaar number to pension accounts’; that they had no authority to
link up the Aadhaar Card to her pension account all of sudden without any notice and stop payment for that
reason. In the judgement, it was stated that:

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“In the name of linking to Aadhaar or other such conditions, the public authority cannot delay the payment
of pensions to the senior citizens and retired employees in view of their post retirement requirements. The
pensioners might mainly depend upon the pension for their livelihood and delaying it will be inhumane and
also amounts to denial of their fundamental right to life. Even if linking with Aadhaar is necessary, it should
not result in delaying the payment of pension or denial of information regarding pension.”

PENALTIES
Section 20 of the Act imposes stringent penalty on a Public Information Officer (PIO) for failing to provide
information. Every PIO will be liable for fine of Rs.250 per day, up to a maximum of Rs.25,000/-, for -
l Not accepting an application;

l Delaying information release without reasonable cause;

l Malafidely denying information;

l Knowingly giving incomplete, incorrect, misleading information;

l Destroying information that has been requested; and

l Obstructing furnishing of information in any manner.

The Information Commission (IC) at the Centre and at the State levels will have the power to impose this penalty.
They can also recommend disciplinary action for violation of the law against the PIO for persistently failing to
provide information without any reasonable cause within the specified period.

JURISDICTION OF COURTS
As per Section 23, lower Courts are barred from entertaining suits or applications against any order made under
this Act.

Role of Central/State Governments

Section 26 contemplates the Role of Central/State Governments. It authorizes the Central/State Governments
to:

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Case Laws
HN Malviya vs. CPIO, Department of Personnel and Training on 31st October, 2022 (Central Information
Commission)
The Appellant filed an RTI application dated 27.01.2021 seeking the information related to seniority of
employees .
The Chief Information Commission in Second Appeal decided that the Commission based on a perusal of
the facts on record observes that the information sought for in the RTI Application is in the form of mere
conjecture and even futuristic query, neither of which conforms to Section 2(f) of the RTI Act, yet the CPIO &
FAA have tried to facilitate the Appellant adequately in keeping with the spirit of the RTI Act. The Appellant
shall note that outstretching the interpretation of Section 2(f) of the RTI Act to include deductions and
inferences to be drawn by the CPIO is unwarranted as it casts immense pressure on the CPIOs to ensure that
they provide the correct deduction/inference to avoid being subject to penal provisions under the RTI Act.
Mr. Raj Kumar vs. CPIO Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital dated 31st October, 2022 (Central Information
Commission)
The Complainant vide his RTI application sought information relating to salary records and DA implementation.
The CPIO furnished a pointwise reply to the Complainant. Dissatisfied with the reply received from the PIO,
the Complainant filed a First Appeal, which was not adjudicated by the First Appellate Authority. Thereafter,
the Complainant filed a Complaint before the Commission.
The Complainant remained absent during the hearing despite notice. The Respondent present during the
hearing submitted that a suitable response in accordance with the provisions of the RTI Act, 2005, had
already been furnished to the Complainant. The respondent further stated that the information sought in
respect of point no. 01 will be furnished in due course.
The Central Information Commission decided that Keeping in view the facts of the case and the submissions
made by the respondent and after perusal of the documents available on record, the Commission directs the
Respondent to furnish complete and correct information to the Complainant, in accordance with the spirit of
transparency and accountability as enshrined in the RTI Act, 2005 within a period of 21 days from the date
of receipt of this order under the intimation to the Commission. The Commission cautions the then CPIO to
be more careful in the future while dealing with the RTI application so that no such lapse would recur and
the provisions of the RTI Act are complied with in letter and spirit.

Lesson round-up

l Right to know is a necessary ingredient of participatory democracy. The Government enacted Right to
Information (RTI) Act, 2005 which came into force on October 12, 2005.
l The RTI Act provides for setting out the practical regime of right to information for citizens to secure
access to information held by public authorities to promote transparency and accountability in the
working of every public authority. Every public authority under the Act has been entrusted with a
duty to maintain records and publish manuals, rules, regulations, instructions, etc. in its possession as
prescribed under the Act. Further, it is obligatory on every public authority to publish the information
about various particulars prescribed under the Act within one hundred and twenty days of the enactment
of this Act.

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