The Right to Information

Class

By: Abdul Hafiz Gandhi

Amity Law School

abdulhafizgandhi@gmail.com

To
The PIO,
Regional Passport Office,
Bhikaji Cama Place,
New Delhi

Sub: Application under Right to Information Act 2005

Dear Sir,
Please provide the following information under Right to Information Act , 2005:
1.
I made an application for issue of a new passport (copy attached). Please tell me the daily
progress made on my application so far. i.e. when did my application reach which officer, for how
long did it stay with that officer and what did he/she do during that period?
2.
According to the rules, my passport should have been made in 45 days. However, it is
more than six months now. Please give the names and designations of the officials who were
supposed to take action on my application and who have not done so?
3.
What action would be taken against these officials for not doing their work and for causing
harassment to the public? By when would that action be taken?
4.

By when would I get my passport now?

I am separately depositing Rs 10 as application fee.

Yours sincerely,
(S Sharma)

1. Introduction- Concept and Historical Background

2. Constitutional Provisions and Decisions of Higher Judiciary on RTI
3. Need for a law on right to information
4. Paradigm shift- How RTI changed govt. structure and thinking
5. Definitions of various words occurring in RTI Act, 2005
6. What is right to information?
7. What is Public Authority?
8. Appellate Authority
9. Time period for giving information
10. Fee payable for RTI
11. Central Information Commission/State Information Commission
12. Penalty provisions
13. What is not covered by RTI?
14. Overriding effect
15. Bar on jurisdiction of lower courts
16. Some useful decisions of CIC/SIC
17. Challenges to RTI
18. Principles of Freedom of Information Legislations

Perils of Ignorance
The suffering that
ignorant men inflict upon
themselves
can hardly be caused
even by their enemies
Dearth of knowledge is
dire destitution. Other
forms of poverty, the
world deems less
impoverishing
(Thiruvalluvar)
Tamil Poet

(Thirukkural verses 843, 841)

 Why we need RTI?

Culture of secrecy prevalent

in government
Lack of accountability in

public offices
Lack of knowledge as to

where to go for seeking

information
Badly maintained records
To make government more

responsive
5

Information is Key to
Democratic process
and
good governance
Curb corruption
and
Inefficiency
in public offices

Human
development

Realization
of human rights

Chronology of Freedom of Information

Laws
Sweden 1766
Colombia 1888
Finland 1951
USA 1966
Denmark, Norway 1970
France 1978
Australia, New Zealand 1982
Canada 1983
India 2005 (But prior to this, state legislations
were there with regard to right to
information)

Status of RTI Laws on the Planet

Chronology of Right to Information

Laws in Indian states :
Tamil Nadu and Goa 1997

. Rajasthan, Karnataka 2000

Delhi 2001
Maharashtra, Assam 2002
Madhya Pradesh 2003
Jammu and Kashmir 2004 (again in 2009)

Status of RTI Laws in India

Decisions of Supreme Court of India making right to

information as Fundamental Right
In Bennett Coleman v. Union of India, in 1973, Supreme Court of India
ruled that the right to freedom of speech and expression guaranteed by
Art. 19(1) (a) included the right to information.
In State of UP v. Raj Narain, in 1975, Justice Mathew explicitly
stated: It is not in the interest of the public to cover with a veil of
secrecy the common routine business the responsibility of
officials to explain and to justify their acts is the chief safeguard
against oppression and corruption.
Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India [AIR 1978 SC 597] Justice
V.R.Krishna Iyer observed that a government which functions in secrecy
not only acts against democratic decency but also buries itself with its own
burial

 In S.P. Gupta v. Union of India, in 1982, the right of the

people to know about every public act, and the details of
every public transaction undertaken by public functionaries
was illustrated.
In Secretary, Ministry of I & B, Government of India v
Cricket Association of Bengal, in 1995, the Supreme
Court held that the right to impart and receive information
from electronic media was included in the freedom of
speech.
In Peoples Union for Civil Liberties v. Union of India,
in 2004, the right to information was further elevated
to the status of a human right, necessary for
making governance transparent and accountable. It was
also emphasized that governance must be
participatory.

Justice Mathew of Supreme Court of India ruled in

the Raj Narain case,1975 that "In a government of
responsibility like ours, where all the agents of the
public must be responsible for their conduct, there can
be but few secrets. The people of this country have a
right to know every public act, everything that is
done in a public way by their public functionaries. They
are entitled to know the particulars of every public
transaction in all its bearing. Their right to know,
which is derived from the concept of freedom of
speech, though not absolute, is a factor which
should make one wary when secrecy is claimed for
transactions which can at any rate have no
repercussion on public security."

Constitutional Provisions for RTI

The Right to Information is a fundamental
right under the Constitution of India
Information is necessary to form and
express opinions, dissent or support on any
matter. It is therefore a part of Article 19 (1)(a)
Information is necessary for protection of
the right to life and liberty. It is therefore the
part
of
Article
21
also.

The right to information started to be recognized

by Indian judiciary by 1970s.
The right to information was difficult to enforce
without going to the Higher Judiciary.
One needed to approach Supreme Court and
High Courts under Article 32 and 226 to enforce
this right.
The Right to Information Act, 2005 is a
codification of this important right of citizens.

Why there arises a need for

RTI?
Because overriding all these, was the
Official Secrets Act, 1923 which threw a
veil
of
secrecy
on
Government
procedures/processes.

Because Article 19(1)(a) is not absolute

right and has reasonable restrictions
under Article 19(2)

Section 5 of the
Official Secrets Act, 1923
Section 5 (1) of the Official Secrets Act, 1923
saysThe disclosure of any information that is likely to
affect the sovereignty and integrity of India, the
security of the State, or friendly relations with foreign
States, is punishable by this Act.
Thus in the name of sovereignty, information was
kept in secrecy.

But openness of governmental

processes and structures is
conducive to good governance

Key Attributes of Good Governance

Transparency
Transparency and Accountability for

Responsibility

Accountability
Participation in govt processes and
decision making
Responsiveness (to the needs of
the people)

Need for a Law on Right to

Information
To make access to information a reality for
every citizen
To make operational the fundamental right to

information.
To set up systems and mechanisms that

facilitate easy access to information.

To promote transparency, accountability and

enable peoples participation in governance.

To minimize corruption and inefficiency in

public offices.
21

Historical Background
1990- PM Mr. V.P. SINGH stressed on Right to

information as a legal right, which need to be codified

1994- A strong grass root movement spearheaded by

MKSS
( Mazdoor Kissan Shakti Sangathan) created mass
awareness and a demand for legislation
1993- First Draft of Information law was prepared by

Consumer Education and Research Council, Ahmedabad

1996- Press Council of India drafted a Bill, Justice P B

Sawant
1997- NIRD ( National Institute of Rural Development)

drafted the

Freedom of Information Bill,1997

22

 1997- A working committee

headed by Mr. H. D. Shourie

drafted

the

Freedom

of

Information Bill,1997
2000-

Freedom

of

Information Bill, 2000 was

tabled

in

the

Parliament

and after some debate was

referred to a committee for
review
23

 2002- NDA Government

enacted the Freedom of

Information Act , 2002

but it

never came into force.

2004- The UPA Government

finally tabled a new Right to

Information Bill in Parliament
2005 On 15 June, 2005,

President Mr. APJ Abdul Kalam

gave his assent and the Act
became operative from 12-13
October, 2005
.

24

RIGHT TO INFORMATION ACT,

2005

The

Freedom of Information Act, 2002 has been

repealed by the Right to Information Act, 2005. ( Section 31 of

RTI, Act 2005 )

This is a Central Act which extends to the whole

of India except the state of Jammu & Kashmir.

The Right to Information Act, 2005 contains 6

chapters and 31 sections with 2 schedules

25

So What is Right to
Information?

Asking for and

being given
information as a
matter of right

What Right to Information Act

does?
It establishes a process for accessing
information held by public authorities
It ordinarily places an obligation on public
authorities
to
give
information
It
provides
a
grievance
redressal
mechanism for citizens who have been
denied information in an unreasonable
manner

Important Facts about RTI in India

Grassroot level movement
India is the only country to call
it a Right and not Freedom.
RTI, FOI, ATI

Enforcement of the RTI Act, 2005

The provisions of section 4 (1),
sections 5(1) and 5(2) sections 12,
13, 15,16, 24, 27 and 28

came into

force at once, and the remaining

provisions of this Act
force

on

the

one

came
hundred

into
and

twentieth day of its enactment. ( i.e.

after 4 months)
29

Extract from the Preamble to RTI Act, 2005

Democracy requires
an informed citizenry
transparency of information which are vital
to its functioning
to contain corruption and

to hold Governments and their instrumentalities

accountable to the governed

RTI declares that Sovereignty is vested in the

Citizen

A paradigm shift
From repressive regime of Official Secret
to
Practical regime of right to information
From office-centric
to
citizen-centric regime
thus promoting - transparency
- accountability
- containing corruption
Results: 1. Informed citizenry
2. New relation between government and governed

All Citizens shall have the Right to

Information (Section 3)

 Definitions Section 2
Information- 2 f

Records,
documents,
memos,
e-mails,
opinions,
advice,
press releases,
circulars,
orders,

logbooks,
contracts,
reports,
papers,
samples,
models,
data material held in
electronic form

Information about private bodies that can

be accessed under existing laws by a public
authority
(Sec. 2)

 Record - Definitions
Any document, manuscript and file
Any microfilm, microfiche and facsimile
copy of a document
Any reproduction of image or images
embodied in such microfilm (whether
enlarged or not)
Any other material produced by
computer or any other device
Sec. 2 (i)

Section 2 (j)
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) inspection of work, documents, records;

(ii) taking notes, extracts or certified copies of documents
or 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.

35

What Right a citizen has under the

Act

A citizen has right to information at par with the Members of

Parliament.
A citizen has a right to seek information from a public authority

which already exists and is held by the public authority.

The PIO is not supposed to:

create information;
to interpret information;
to solve the problems raised by the applicants;
to furnish replies to hypothetical questions.
The right includes:
inspection of work, documents and records;
taking notes, extracts or certified copies of documents or records; and

taking certified samples of material.

seeking information

Seeking information
Identify the Public authority where

the information is available

Draft focused questions
Submit the application to the PIO or
APIO
Wait for the decision

Competent Authority
Speaker Lok Sabha / Vidhana Sabha
Chairman of the Rajya Sabha / Legislative
Council
Supreme Court and High Courts Chief
Justices
President of India or the Governor for all other
authorities
created by or under the
Constitution
For UTs Administrator (Lt. Governor)
[Sec. 2(e)]

Definition
Section 2(h)
"public authority" means any authority or body or
institution of self- government established or constituted
(a) by or under the Constitution;
(b) by any other law made by Parliament;
(c) by any other law made by State Legislature;
(d) by notification issued or order made by the appropriate
Government,
and includes any
(i) body owned, controlled or substantially financed;
(ii) non-Government organization substantially financed,
directly or indirectly by funds provided by the appropriate
Government.
Note: What is appropriate

government? Section 2(a)

39

What is Public Authority?

Any authority or body constituted under the
Constitution or law made by Parliament / State
Legislature
Any authority or body constituted by notification
issued or order made by Central /State Govts.
Any other body owned or controlled by the
Central / State Govts.
[Sec. 2(h)]

RTI and Supreme Court Controversy

Whether Supreme Court is covered by RTI or not?
RTI by Subhash Chandra Aggarwal, RTI Activist based in
Delhi
Ex-Chief Justice of India Justice K.G. Balkrishnan was of
the view that Supreme Court is not covered by RTI
Central Information Commission held Supreme Court is

covered
Delhi High Court in 2009 also held that SC is covered by
RTI

Now, the appeal is before the Supreme Court

itself

RTI and Political Parties Controversy

On June 3, 2013 Central Information Commission held that
political parties are covered under Section 2 (h) of the RTI
Act, 2005.
Tax-exempted income of the 10 main political parties in the
last five years touched a whopping Rs 2,490 crore (TOI, 2
Dec, 2012). This information was accessed by Hisar based
RTI activist Ramesh Verma from Income Tax Department
RTI (Amendment) Bill 2013 was presented in the Parliament
on 12th August, 2013 to exempt Political parties from RTI.
The RTI (Amendment) Bill 2013 would overturn the June 3
order of the Central Information Commission which held six
political parties- Congress, BJP, BSP, NCP, CPI and CPM - as
public authorities under Section 2(h) of the RTI Act, 2005.

Political Parties and Sec. 2(h) of RTI

Reason: These political parties are directly or indirectly
funded by the government
Association for Democratic Rights (ADR), sought the information
under RTI, claiming that political parties are covered under RTI since
they get huge tax exemption from the government.
Four major political parties in India have got Rs. 1,033 crore from
the government in form of income tax exemption (replies received
from the income tax department under the transparency law has
revealed this).

Data compiled by ADR shows that the Congress got

maximum income tax exemption of Rs. 557 crore between
2006-07 and 2010-11 followed by BJP - Rs. 282 crore and
BSP Rs. 97 crore.

 The political parties are exempted from paying any

income tax under section 13 (A) of the Income Tax Act on
the ground that the money is being used for benefit of
public.
Apart from tax exemption, the parties have also got
prime property in Lutyens Delhi for their offices, for which
they have to pay a nominal rent.
Punjab and Haryana High Court had declared Punjab Cricket
Association, a private body, as a public authority under the RTI law
for availing exemption of the entertainment tax.
Similarly, Punjab State Information Commission declared Christian
Medical College Ludhiana as a public authority for seeking
exemption from paying income tax.

RTI and Political Parties Controversy

BJD, TMC and CPI and many other RTI Activists
objected to this Amendment and hence Bill was
referred to the Standing Committee
RTI (Amendment) Bill 2013 is now referred to
Parliamentary Standing Committee on Personnel,
Public Grievances, Law and Justice
This committee has invited views and suggestions
from individuals or organisations interested in the
Bill. The committee will also hear select oral views
from stakeholders concerned.

Public Authority
Duty of Pro-active Disclosure- Soul & Heart
Section 4: Every Public Authority must publish
these on a regular basis -

1. Particulars of its organisation, duties

and functions
2. Powers and duties of its officers and
employees
3. Procedure to be followed in its decisionmaking process, including channels of
supervision and accountability
4. Norms set out by it for discharge of its
functions

5. Information about rules, regulations,

instructions, manuals & records used by its
employees for discharging its functions
6. Statement of the categories of documents held
by it or under its control

7. Details of any arrangement for consultation or

representation by members of public in relation
to policy formulation and implementation

8.

List of boards, councils committees and other

bodies consisting of 2 or more persons for
getting advice including whether their meetings
are open to the public or if minutes of meetings
are accessible to them

9. Directory of its officers and employees

10 . Monthly remuneration received including the
system of
compensation as provided in its
regulations
11. Budget allocated to each of its agencies,
indicating particulars of all plans, proposed
expenditure and reports of disbursements

Information Disseminators
Public Information officers (PIOs) must be
designated in each Public Authority at the
level of its administrative units or offices
under it

Asst. PIOs must be designated at subdivisional or sub-district level

[Sec. 5]

Duties of PIO
Accept requests and give information
within time limit
Assist those who cannot read and write to
fill up application
Give information in the format requested
as far as possible
If granting partial access; give reasons
why and the materials on the basis of which
this decision was taken

Appellate Authority (AA)

[Sec. 12-19]

First Appeal
(Internal)

The officer senior in rank to the PIO

in the concerned public authority
(Within 30 days from the date of refusal
letter but delay may be condoned if
sufficient cause is shown)
Time limit = 30 days

Appellate Authority (AA)

[Sec. 12-19]

Second appeal
(External)

to Central/State Information Commission

(within 90 days from the date of decision of first AA but
delay may be condoned if sufficient cause is shown)

No time limit for CIC/SIC to decide on appeals

Decision of CIC/SIC
is binding

Burden of proof lies on PIO

for justifying denial of
information

Appeal against ICs decision can be filed in High

Courts/Supreme Court, not lower courts

What is not open to disclosure? Section 8

Information, disclosure of which would prejudicially affect the sovereignty and
integrity of India, the security, strategic, scientific or economic interests of the
State, relation with foreign State or lead to incitement of an offence
Information which has been expressly forbidden to be published by any court
of law or tribunal or the disclosure of which may constitute contempt of court;
Information, the disclosure of which would cause a breach of privilege of
Parliament or the State Legislature;
Information including commercial confidence, trade secrets or intellectual
property, the disclosure of which would harm the competitive position of a
third party, unless the competent authority is satisfied that larger public
interest warrants the disclosure of such information;
Information available to a person in his fiduciary relationship, unless the
competent authority is satisfied that the larger public interest warrants the
disclosure of such information;

 Information received in confidence from foreign Government;

Information, the disclosure of which would endanger the life or
physical safety of any person or identify the source of information or
assistance given in confidence for law enforcement or security
purposes;
Information which would impede the process of investigation or
apprehension or prosecution of offenders;
Cabinet papers including records of deliberations of the Council of
Ministers, Secretaries and other officers;
Information which relates to personal information the disclosure of
which has no relationship to any public activity or interest, or which
would cause unwarranted invasion of the privacy of the individual;
Notwithstanding any of the exemptions listed above, a public authority
may allow access to information, if public interest in disclosure
outweighs the harm to the protected interests.

Guiding principles for disclosure

Information which cannot be denied to Parliament

or Legislature of a State shall not be denied to any
person
[Sec. 8(l)]
All exemptions subject to public interest over ride
access may be allowed if public interest
outweighs harm to the protected interests to
be decided by PIO or appellate body
Partial Disclosure

[Sec. 8(2)]

Entire file/record is not exempt even if it

contains
exempt
information.
Non-exempt
portions may be released after severing exempt
parts

[Sec. 10(1)]

 Time bound disclosure

All information about any event, occurrence or matter
must be given after 20 years
Except
information relating to sovereignty, security, integrity,
scientific and economic interest of the State
information that may lead to commission of an offence
Cabinet papers and records of deliberations of Council
of Ministers , Secretaries and other officers
information that may lead to breach of privileges of
Parliament and State Legislatures
[Sec. 8(3)]

What is not covered? Sec. 24 and

Schedule II

IB & RAW; CBI; NIA, NIG

Directorate of Revenue
Intelligence
Central Economic
Intelligence Bureau
Directorate of Enforcement
Narcotics Control Bureau
Aviation Research Centre

and any other intelligence

or security organisation
established by State govts.
Matters
relating
to
corruption and human
rights
violations
covered by law

CRPF, ITBP, CISF, NSG

SPG

Information can be given

only
if
concerned
Information
Comm.
approves

Assam Rifles

Time limit

Special Frontier Force

Special Branch (CID) Andaman and Nicobar

Crime Branch (CID) Dadra and Nagar Haveli
Special Branch Lakshadweep Police

45 days

Severability (Section 10)

(Partial Disclosure of Information)
Where a request for access to information is
rejected on the ground that it is in relation
to information which is exempt from
disclosure,

then
Access may be provided to that part of the
record
which
is
not
exempted
from
disclosure, and which can reasonably be
severed from any part that contains exempt
information

[Section 10(1)]

Application Process

[Sec. 6 & 7]

Apply in person or
electronically

request in English or
local official language

Time limit
information

30 days

for

giving

If information concerns
life and liberty of a
person

must be given within

48 hrs

If information is given by
third party then invite
objections, if any

add 10 extra days

No action on application
for 30 days

deemed refusal

(Reasons for seeking information shall not be asked)

Fees payable
Must be reasonable. No fees for Below Poverty Line applicant
Application fees prescribed by appropriate Govt. (Rs.10/-)
Cost of giving information may be charged on the requestor
(Details of fees and how the figure was arrived at must be given in writing)

Rs. 2/-

per page; Rs. 50/- per floppy, others and samples actual cost; inspection 1st hour free, Rs. 5/ - every subsequent
hour or fraction of minutes

Requestor may seek review of the fees from the Appellate

Authority if it is unreasonable
Time between date of dispatch of intimation about fees and
actual payment excluded while calculating 30 day time limit
If information is not given within time
limit it must be given free of cost

1. RTI applicant asked to deposit Rs 17.44 lakh as

photocopying charges
A Chennai-based social worker B Sivagami Sundaram, was aghast at the reply
he received from the Tamil Nadu food department in response to an
application he had filed under the Right to Information Act.
The department's reply stated that as prescribed under RTI rules Sundaram
would have to pay Rs 2 a page to get information that would run into 8.72 lakh
pages.
In his application, Sundaram had wanted to know the number of people
covered under the public distribution system (PDS) in the state district-wise
and taluk-wise.
Tamil Nadu has about two crore ration cards, covering more than six crore
people.
It is a lesson not only for him but for others as well - that an RTI application
should be very clearly worded. Otherwise, authorities could misinterpret your
query or even take the opportunity to block information.

2. RTI applicant Sanjay Bhalika was asked to pay Rs. 1.3 lakh as
photocopying charges by jail officials in Kalyan district of
Maharashtra.
3. Gupteshwar Singh, a social activist from Bihar's Bhojpur district,
filed a RTI plea. He was asked to pay Rs 78,21,252.
He filed RTI seeking date-wise details of the distribution of foodgrains
and kerosene under the Public Distribution System in Bhojpur district
between 2000 and 2008. He also sought photocopies of dealers'
payment receipts.
Bhojpur supply officer wrote to Singh that "all the desired information
was ready with details", but he would first have to deposit Rs
78,21,252 the estimated cost of photocopying the documents.
"If you do not turn up... by the said time, it would be understood that
you do not need information at all," supply officer wrote to
Gupteshwar Singh.

Central Information Commission

1 Chief Information Commissioner (5 yr term) and max.
10 Information Commissioners (ICs) ( one 5 yr term)
Central Information Commission to be based in Delhi
Chief Information Commissioner to be in Delhi but ICs
could be based in other parts
Commission will be independent of Govt. control
CIC and ICs to be appointed by President
Names recommended by committee - PM (Chair), Leader
of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and 1 Cabinet Minister
nominated by PM

State Information Commission

1 State Chief Information Commissioner (5 yr term) and max. 10
State Information Commissioners (SICs) (one 5 yr term)
State Information Commission could be in any part of the State
to be decided by the State
Commission will be independent of State Govt. control
SCIC and SICs to be appointed by Governor
Names recommended by committee - CM (Chair), Leader of
Opposition in the Vidhan Sabha and
1 Cabinet Minister
nominated by CM

Similar powers and functions

Information Commission

as

Central

Penalty Provisions- Sec. 20

Information Commission can penalize PIO Rs. 250/- per day
up to a maximum of Rs. 25,000/- for Refusal to receive application
Not furnishing information
within time limit

Without
reasonable
cause

Malafidely denying information

Knowingly giving incorrect,
incomplete, misleading
information
Destroying information which
was the subject of request
Obstructing furnishing of
information in any manner

For persistent violation of

the law IC can
recommend disciplinary
action-

Sec.20(2)

Third Party
A person other than the person making a request for
information and includes a public authority
If information requested is given by third party and treated
as confidential by the third party then PIO must give it
written notice inviting objections
Third party must be given notice within 5 days of receiving
information request
Third party may give verbal or written submissions to PIO
within 10 days of receiving notice
Third party can appeal to First Appellate Authority within 30
days and to IC within 90 days

Third Party Information (Sec. 11)

First Party
Requester
for information

Second Party
Public Authority
processing request

Third Party
Individual, NGO,
Company, another
Government, another
Public Authority

Flowchart: Third party consultation process

Requester submits Application

Q.1: Does PIO intend to disclose?

Q.2: Does info relate to a
third party
Q.3: Info treated as confidential
by third party

No. The PIO must

Issue a rejection notice
To the requester

No The PIO does not

need to consult the
third party

Third party to be consulted within 5 days of receipt of request and give them 10 days for Submission reply
The PIO to decide regarding disclosure Within 40 days of receipt of the application

Third party objects to disclosure

PIO decides AGAINST disclosure
Requester can make an appeal

Third party makes no response Or does not object

PIO decides IN FAVOUR of disclosure
Third party can make an appeal

Burden of Proof on PIO

In any appeal proceedings, the onus to prove that a
denial of request was justified shall be on the PIO,

[S. 19(5)]
Burden of proving that PIO has acted reasonably and
diligently shall be on him

[S. 20 (1) Proviso]

Disciplinary action against PIO [S. 20(2)]
If PIO persistently violates his obligations under RTI
Act, Information Commission shall recommend for
disciplinary action against such PIO (Under Service
Rules applicable)

Overriding effect
[Sec.22]
The provisions of this Act have an
overriding effect over anything
inconsistent 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 law.

Bar of jurisdiction of Courts (S. 23)

No court shall entertain any suit, application or

other proceedings in respect of any order made
under this Act and no such order shall be called
in question otherwise than by way of an appeal
under this Act.
However, options for Writ Petitions and SLP will
stand
(ARTICLE 32, 226 and 136 OF THE CONSTITUTION)

Online filing of RTI

www.rtionline.gov.in
This is a portal to file RTI applications/first
appeals online along with payment gateway.
Payment can be made through internet banking
of SBI & its associate banks and debit/credit
cards of Master/Visa.
Through this portal, RTI applications/first
appeals
can
be
filed
for
the
main
ministries/departments of Central Govt., located
at New Delhi.
RTI applications/first appeals should not be filed
for other Public authorities under Central/State
Govt. through this portal.
Note: Please do not file RTI applications through this
portal for the public authorities under the State

Some useful decisions of the

Information Commissions

RTI Act does not allow the applicant

to ask the PIO his opinion on certain issues

{sec 2 (f)}
(Raj. Information Commission)
(Jai deo v/s Commr. Municipality Sri Ganganagar,
Appeal No 175/2006.

File Noting are not exempt from disclosure

Definition of File : Manual of Office Procedure of DoPT: File means
Collection of papers on a specific subject matter, assigned a file number
and consisting of one or more of the following parts:
a) Correspondence

b) notes

c) Appendix to Correspondence d) Appendix to Notes

This would imply that noting are an inextricable part of a record

as defined u/s 2(f) and further defined u/s 2(i). Therefore file
noting cannot be held to be excluded unless they come in
conflict with public interest or are excluded under any of the
provisions of RTI Act.
Full Bench of Central Information Commission
Appeal No. CIC/OK/A/2006/00154 Dated January 2, 2007

Pyare Lal Vs Ministry of Railways, DoPT

Answer sheets
Administrative difficulties cannot be
plea for debarring citizens from
fundamental
rights.
No
other
provisions except provided in R.T.I.
Act are valid.
Commission ordered to show the
evaluated answer-sheet
State Information Commission, Rajasthan
Shri Jetha Ram v/s Registrar ,Bikaner

University
Appeal no. 173/06

Answer sheets
Inspection of examination answer sheet

after announcement of result is not

exempted from disclosure under section
8(1)(d).
The candidate can see his own answer
sheets
State Information Commission, Rajasthan

Shri Anoop Singh v/s

RPSC
23,26,33,34,71,143/2006

Answer sheets
Inspection or providing copy of

his
own
answer
sheet
of
examination is not barred under
section 8(1)(d).

State Information Commission, Rajasthan

Ashish Yadav v/s Board of Sec. Education,

Rajasthan
Appeal No. 199/2006

Disclose marks
The commission felt that there should be lot of transparency in
the conduct of examination and hence they should disclose marks
secured by the successful candidates and also cut-off marks, if
any, prescribed in the organization for the selection process. It
has also been decided in the commission that whenever a
candidate is seeking information about his own marks it should
also be revealed to him.
Smt. Padma Balasubramanian,
Central Information Commissioner
Appeal No. 638/ICPB/2007 F.No. PBA/07/158 June 29, 2007
Appeal No. 636/ICPB/2007 F. No. PBA/07/138 Dated June 29, 2007

Personal information S.8(1)(j)

When S. 8(1)(j) is read as a whole, it is apparent that Personal
information does not mean information relating to the
information seeker since the question of invasion of privacy
does not arise in his own case. Therefore when a citizen seeks
information about his own case and as long as the information
sought is not exempt in terms of other provisions of Section 8 of
RTI Act, this section cannot be applied to deny the information.
Appeal No. 374/ICPB/2006 F. No. PBA/07/17 Dated March 5, 2007

Mr. P.N. Shukla Vs Canara Bank

Personal information S.8(1)(j)

Regarding Disclosure of Applications of candidates for Exam

The documents submitted by individual applicants contain a lot of

information as personal details, income, PAN, sources of funds,
partnership details, plans to run dealership, affidavit etc. which are
personal documents and contain a lot of information of confidential
nature, submitted by third parties, not

to be given.

Appeal No. 30/IC(A)/06/F.No CIC/MA/A/2006/0050/

Dated 20thApril 2006

The following shall ordinarily be provided

a)Copy of every bill settled from funds controlled by the Public
Authority
b) Calculation sheet of TA/DA
c) Statement of accounts of every Project/Event funded/
organised by Public Authority
d) Expenditure details and purposes of every journey
performed by Government Employee in Official Capacity
e) Name, Qualification and expertise details of each member of
Selection Committee once the Selection is over.
f) Details of all the Quotations and quoted rates of any
product/service after the purchase procedure is over (including
Building/Transport contract etc)

Monitoring and Reporting (Sec. 25)

Central Information Commission (CIC) shall send an annual
report to the Central Government on the implementation of the
provisions of RTI Act at the end of the year. [Similarly SIC to
State Government]
This Report shall contain details of number of requests
received by each Public Authority, number of rejections and
appeals, particulars of any disciplinary action taken, amount of
fees and charges collected etc.
Central Government after the end of each year, cause a copy of
the report of CIC to be laid before each house of Parliament.
CIC to recommend improvement in practices of public
authority.

Appropriate Government to
prepare programmes ( Section 26)
The appropriate Government to:
a)

Develop and organize educational programmes to

advance the understanding of the public,
particularly the disadvantaged, to exercise right to
information.

b)

Encourage public authorities to participate in

programmes;

c)

promote timely/ effective dissemination of

accurate info on activities.

d)

Train PIOs and produce relevant training materials

85

PRINCIPLES OF FREEDOM OF INFORMATION LEGISLATIONS

PRINCIPLE 1. MAXIMUM DISCLOSURE
Freedom of information legislation should be guided by the principle of
maximum disclosure
PRINCIPLE 2. OBLIGATION TO PUBLISH
Public bodies should be under an obligation to publish key Information
PRINCIPLE 3. PROMOTION OF OPEN GOVERNMENT
Public bodies must actively promote open government
PRINCIPLE 4. LIMITED SCOPE OF EXCEPTIONS
Exceptions should be clearly and narrowly drawn and subject to strict harm
and public interest tests
PRINCIPLE 5. PROCESSES TO FACILITATE ACCESS
Requests for information should be processed rapidly and fairly and an
independent review of any refusals should be available
PRINCIPLE 6. LOW COSTS
Individuals should not be deterred from making requests for information by
excessive costs

PRINCIPLES OF FREEDOM OF INFORMATION LEGISLATIONS

.continued.
PRINCIPLE 7. OPEN MEETINGS
Meetings of public bodies should be open to the public
PRINCIPLE 8. DISCLOSURE TAKES PRECEDENCE
Laws which are inconsistent with the principle of maximum disclosure
should be amended or repealed
PRINCIPLE 9. PROTECTION FOR WHISTLE-BLOWERS
Individuals who release information on wrongdoing the whistleblowers
must be protected.

Notifications
Right to Information (Regulation of

Fees and Cost Rules),2005

Central Information Commission

(Appeal Procedure Rules),2005

88

Right to Information (Regulation

of Fees and Cost Rules),2005
Application Fee Rs.10
A4/A3 paper Rs 2 per page;
Larger paper actual cost;
Printed publications fixed price,
photocopies/extracts Rs 2 per page;

Floppy/diskette Rs 50;

Samples/ models actual cost;

Inspection of records 1st hour free and Rs 5 for

each subsequent hour.
89

State Legislations
The following states
and Union Territories
have enacted Right to
Information Rules:
( The list includes the states
to the extent details are
available at the respective
state sites)

Andaman & Nicobar

Islands
Daman & Diu

Andhra
Pradesh

Madhya
Pradesh

Arunachal
Pradesh

Maharashtr
a

Assam

Meghalaya

Chattisgarh

Nagaland

Goa

Orissa

Gujarat

Punjab

Haryana

Rajasthan

Himachal
Pradesh

Sikkim

Jharkhand

Tamil Nadu

Karnataka

Tripura

Kerala

Uttar
Pradesh
90

State Appeal Rules

The states which have prescribed
appeal fees are listed below:
Government Fee for
Appeal to
AA

Fee for
Mode of Payment
Appeal to
IC

Arunachal
Pradesh

Nil

Rs.50

Treasury Challan

Madhya
Pradesh

Rs.50

Rs.100

Cash/Non-judicial
Stamp

Maharashtr
a

Rs.20

Rs.20

Cash against
receipt/demand
draft/bankers
cheque/ court fee
stamp

Orissa

Rs.50

Rs.50

Court fee stamp

91

Some Samples of RTI

Public Information Officers

(Name of the Department)
(Office)
(Place)
Sub: Application under the RTI Act, 2005
Madam/Sir,
During the period 1.01.2012 to 31.12.2012, please give the following information with respect to all
the works carried out to restore the roads cut by various agencies in the area ________:
1. List of agencies who carried out road cutting during this period, purpose for which it was carried
out and the period when it was carried out.
2. Amount of money deposited, if any, by each of these agencies and dates of such deposit
3. Exact location with copies of sketches to indicate where was the permission granted to cut the
road to each agency.
4. Did each of these agencies adhere to the locations for which permission was granted or was there
any deviation during execution?
5. How was this deposit money utilized by MCD? Please give list of all the works carried out through
the use of deposit money indicating the name of work, amount booked under that work and the
location which was repaired under each work, with copy of sketch.
I am depositing the application fee (Rs.10/-) separately. If you feel that above requested information does not pertain
to your department then please follow the provisions of Section 6(3) of the RTI Act, 2005/Also as per the provisions of
the RTI Act, 2005 please provide the details (Name and Designation) of the first appellate authority w.r.t to your
department with the reply to the above request., where I may if required file my first appeal.

Thanking you,

Public Information Officers

(Name of the Department)
(Office)
(Place)
Sub: Application under the RTI Act, 2005
Madam/Sir,
The following street lights are not functioning for a long period.
1.
2.
Several complaints have been made so far, the details of which are given below:
1.
2.
However, no action has been taken so far. Please provide following information:
1.
Who has contract of maintenance of street-lights of this area? Please provide a copy of contract.
2.
Within how much time of a complaint made by the citizens should the contractor replace/ repair defective lights? Please
provide relevant extracts of the contract or letter etc which makes a mention of this.
3.
If the street light is not repaired or replaced within this time period, what action can be taken against the contractor? Please
provide relevant extracts of the contract or letter etc which makes a mention of this.
4.
Under what circumstances can the payment of the contractor be deducted? Please provide relevant extracts of the contract
or letter etc which makes a mention of this.
5.
Can the payment of the contractor be deducted in the circumstances arising out of my complaints? If no, why?
6.
If yes, within how much time will the concerned authorities deduct the contractors payment?
7.
Under what conditions can the contract be cancelled? Please provide relevant extracts of the contract or letter etc which
makes a mention of this.
8.
Can the contract be cancelled in the circumstances arising out of my complaints?
9.
If yes, within how much time will the concerned authorities cancel the contract?
10. What powers does the concerned authorities have to force the contractor to do his job properly?
11. Please provide me copies of all letters or directions issued by authorities to the contractor immediately after they have now
received this application under Right to Information.
I am depositing the application fee (Rs.10/-) . If you feel that above requested information does not pertain to your department
then please follow the provisions of Section 6(3) of the RTI Act, 2005/Also as per the provisions of the RTI Act, 2005 please
provide the details (Name and Designation) of the first appellate authority w.r.t to your department with the reply to the above
request., where I may if required file my first appeal.
Thanking you,

Public Information Officers

(Name of the Department)
(Office)
(Place)
Sub: Application under the RTI Act, 2005
Madam/Sir,
1.
Section 2(j)(i) of the Right to Information Act, 2005 gives a right to every citizen to inspect any work. I wish to
inspect the following work. Please let me know the date, time and venue when I should come to inspect this work.
a)
2.
I would like to inspect the following documents related to this work at the time of inspection. These records
should be made available to me for inspection when I come for inspection of the above work:
a.
b.
c.

Measurement Book
Details of Estimates
Sketches

If I desire to take copies of any of the above documents or parts thereof, I would intimate the same after inspection. I
request that the copies should be provided to me after charging prescribed fee.
3.
Section 2(j)(iii) also gives a right to the citizens to take sample of material. I would like to take sample of material
of the above work. The sample should be collected by the Department in my presence from the place of my choice and
should be sealed and certified to be a true sample of material of that work.
I am depositing the application fee (Rs.10/-) If you feel that above requested information does not pertain to your
department then please follow the provisions of Section 6(3) of the RTI Act, 2005/Also as per the provisions of the RTI
Act, 2005 please provide the details (Name and Designation) of the first appellate authority w.r.t to your department
with the reply to the above request., where I may if required file my first appeal.
Yours sincerely,

Apprehensions
The information will be misused.
Officers and others will be black-mailed

One can only be blackmailed if there is something to

hide, not when information is open and accessible to all.
Only those who have done wrong can be blackmailed.

In fact this Act will be a deterrent for wrongdoing.

Challenges to RTI
1.Lack of awareness about the law
2.Culture of secrecy
3.Low interest of academic community on research and
studies of impact of RTI on society
4.Mixed response to RTI by judiciary
5.Non-seriousness of governments about RTI- no report of
Information Commission are discussed in Parliament or
State assemblies
6.Non-integration of RTI regime with information
technology and internet
7.Private-Public Partnership Model- must be included
8.Need to change perception about RTI- Its a tool and not
a weapon
9.Low participation of female in the use of RTI
10.Rural-Urban divide
11.Killings of RTI Activists- Need of Whistle-blowers Act

Government Employee is no longer a

Government Servant.
She/He has to transform to a Public
Servant in Letter and Spirit.

The real Swaraj will come not by the

acquisition of authority by a few but
by the acquisition of capacity by all
to resist authority when abused
-Mahatma Gandhi

Web-sites For Reference

www.persmin.nic.in
www.freedominfo.org
www.cfoi.org.uk
www.rti.gov.in
www.cic.gov.in
www.humanrightsinitiative.org
www.mahadhikar.org
www.righttoinformation.info
www.parivartan.com/
www.satyamevajayate.info/
100

Thank you
For more information you may contact:

abdulhafizgandhi@gmail.com
www.facebook.com/abdulhafizgandhi
www.twitter.com/hafizgandhi
Mob. 8090904683