CS Executive JIGL - Right To Information Act, 2005 Question and Answers

Right to receive information

The right to convey and receive information is a inherent in the right to freedom of speech and expression given under Article 19(1) (a) of our Constitution guarantees to all citizens as freedom of speech and expression.

This includes the right to propagate and circulate one’s views and opinions subject to reasonable restrictions. Such a right cannot be enjoyed except along with the right to knowledge and information, since a person has to have knowledge before he can give his opinion regarding anything.

Public authority

The definition includes any authority or body or institution of self government established or constituted by or under the following –

The Constitution of India;
Any other law made by Parliament;
A law made by State Legislature;
A notification issued or order made by the appropriate Govt. [Section 2(h)]

Record

It includes:

any document, manuscript and file;
any microfilm, microfiche and facsimile copy of a document;
a reproduction of image(s) included in such microfilm; and
any other material produced by a computer or any other device; [Section 2(i)]

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Information

It means any material in any form, including:

Records or documents,
Office memos or e-mails,
Opinions given or advices held,
Press releases and circulars,
Orders, logbooks or contracts,
Reports and papers,
Samples, models, data etc.
Other material held in any electronic form. [Section 2(f)]

Right to information

It includes the right to information held by or under the control of any public authority and which is accessible under this Act. It includes the right to:

take notes, extracts, or certified copies of documents or records;
inspect work, documents, records;
take certified samples of material;
obtain 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)]

Third-party

The term ‘third party’ includes anyone other than the appellant or the respondent, and who is applying for information under this Act. [Section 2(n)]. In matters where an appellant is seeking information not regarding his or her own activities, information cannot be provided until the ‘third party’ consents to a disclosure.

In such a case, the Central Public Information Office (CPIO) will allow the disclosure of information after considering the implications of it. Section 11 (1) the Act provides for the procedure to access third party information.

The Section says that when the appellant needs to request for the third party’s consent, the CPIO will produce a written request to the ‘third party’, specifying a time for giving their assent. Such power is vested in the PIO who will then allow disclosure based on the merits of the case or in ‘larger public interest’.

CS Executive JIGL - Right To Information Act, 2005 Question and Answers

Information not available for disclosure

As per Section 8 of the Act, the following information is not available for disclosure. Information that:

might negatively affect the integrity and independence of the country.
is likely to cause a breach of the restrictions put on its disclosure by a court, if disclosed.
if disclosed will result in a leak of information that the Parliament or a State Legislature does not want to make public.
if disclosed, can cause financial losses to the party that controls it, like IPR and trade secrets.
is better not disclosed in the larger interests of the public.
Is entrusted by the government of a foreign country to our nation or its government.
Is related to the identity of an informant, which if disclosed would endanger the life or property of that person.
Obstructs any judicial proceedings against a person.
Counts as the inner deliberations of the Cabinet or Council of Ministers.
Is of a personal nature.

If, however, the giving of the information has more benefits for the public than losses for the party who controls the information, the PIO will allow its disclosure.

Obligations of a public authority

Section 4(1)(b) requires every public authority to publish within one hundred and twenty days of the enactment of this Act, the following details:

the details of its organization and the functions and duties performed by it;
the powers and duties of its officers and employees;
its decision making process, and information regarding its supervision and accountability;
how it performs its functions
its rules, regulations, instructions for employees etc.;
the categories of the documents held by it directly or indirectly;
the particulars of any arrangement that exists for consultation with the public, for formulation of policies or their implementation; to hotenst
a directory of its officers and employees;
the budget allocated to each of its agency, indicating the particulars of all plans, proposed expenditures and reports on disbursements made;
particulars of recipients of concessions, permits or authorizations granted by it;
details of the information available to, or held by it, in an electronic form;
how the citizens can obtain information needed, zaitub ait abem
the names, designations and other details needed to contact the Public Information Officers.
Such other information as may be prescribed; Such information is to be updated every year.

Public information officers (PIO)

Section 5 requires every public authority to:

Designate in all its administrative units or offices Central or State Public Information Officers in order to make available information to persons who have made a request for it.
Designation of Central Assistant or State Assistant Public Information Officers at each sub-divisional level or sub-district level to receive the applications for information.
Not ask for a reason to be given by the person making request for information and not to demand additional information except that which might be necessary for contacting him.

Request for information

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

The application is to be submitted in writing or electronically to the Public Information Officerbie (PIO).

Duties of a PIO

The PIO’s work is to deal with requests from persons seeking information and to reduce the request to writing where it has not already so been made. His duties are as under:

If the information requested is held by another public authority, the PIO shall transfer the request to that other public authority within 5 days and inform the applicant immediately.

The PIO shail, 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. This he shall do as expeditiously as possible and maximum within 30 days of the receipt of the request.

Where the information requested for concerns the life or liberty of a person, it has to be given within forty-eight hours of the receipt of the request. If the PIO does not give decision on the request within the designated period, he shall be deemed to have refused the request.

Where a request has been rejected, the PIO shall communicate to the applicant –

the reasons for such rejection,
the period within which an appeal against such rejection may be preferred, and
the particulars of the Appellate Authority.

The PIO shall provide information in the form in which it is sought unless it would be impracticable to do so 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.

He will also give the reasons for the decision. 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.

Central Information Commission (CIC)

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 Information Commissioners not exceeding 10.

They shall be appointed by the President of India on the recommendations of a committee consisting of the 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 CIC/IC is not to be a Member of Parliament or Member of the Legislature of any State or Union Territory and is not to hold any other office of profit or be connected with any political party or carry on any business or pursue any profession.

The CIC is responsible for general superintendence, direction and management of the affairs of the Commission, and in this, is assisted by the Information Commissioners. [Section 13]

State Information Commission

The State Government has the authority to constitute the SIC through a notification in the State Gazette. The State Information Commission comprises one State Chief Information Commissioner (SCIC) and not more than 10 State Information Commissioners (SICS).

These are to be appointed by the Governor on the recommendations of a committee consisting of the Chief Minister who is to be the Chairman of the Committee.

Powers of Information Commissions

The Central Information Commission/State Information Commission receive complaints from any person:

who could not submit an information request because a PIO has not been appointed;
who has been refused access to information requested;
who has received no response to his/her information request within the specified time limits;
who thinks unreasonable fees is being charged;
who thinks that he has been given incomplete or false or misleading information given is; and
on any other related matter under this law.

The CIC may initiate an enquiry; in doing so, the Commission has the same powers as are vested in a Civil Court. The CIC, 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, nor can the authority refuse to share the records and information contained therein. (Section 18)

Offences and penalties under the Act

The Act imposes a penalty of 250 per day, up to a maximum of 25,000/- on a Public Information Officer (PIO) for failing to provide Information. The PIO can be charged for the following offences:

not accepting an application;
delaying access to the information without reasonable cause;
denying information with a mala fide intention;
knowingly giving incomplete, incorrect or misleading information;
destroying information that has been requested; and
obstructing the furnishing of information in any manner.

The Information Commission (IC) at the Centre and States can impose this penalty. They can also recommend further disciplinary action against the PIO, in case of repeated offences. [Section 20]

Role of Central/State Governments

The Governments have the following duties under the Act:

To develop educational programmes for the public in general, especially for the disadvantaged communities who have no knowledge of their rights under RTI.

Encourage Public Authorities to engage participate in the expansion of such programmes.

Encourage timely dissemination of correct information to the public.

Train officers and develop training materials for this purpose. So that the people involved in the implementation of this Act will have right knowledge regarding the procedures, their duties etc.

Prepare and propagate a User Guide for the public in the official language of the State.

Publish the details of PIOs of authorities and other information like fees to be paid, remedies if request for information is not entertained etc. [Section 26]

Descriptive Questions

Question 1: Explain the following: Salient features of the Right to Information Act, 2005
Answer:

Salient features of India’s Right to Information Act, 2005

The RTI Act, 2005 empowers every citizen to:

To ask for clarifications from any government department an
Inspect any government documents.
Take copies of any government documents onbetalen oli of
Take samples of materials of any Government work, subject to certain facts remaining outside the scope of public purview.

Information can be sought from any department of the central or state government, from panchayati raj institutions, and from any other organization or institution (including NGOs) that is established, constituted, owned, controlled or substantially financed, directly or indirectly, by the state or central government (Section 2(a) & (h)).

In each department, at least one officer has been designated as a public information officer (PIOs). The work of this officer would be to provide the information sought by the applicant (Section 5(1)).

Each sub-district/divisional level there are to be assistant public information officers (APIOs) who receive requests for information and appeals against decisions of the public information officers, and then send them to the appropriate authorities (Section 5(2)).

Any person seeking information should file an application in writing or through electronic means in English or Hindi (or in the official language of the area) along with the application fees with the PIO/APIO (Section 6(1)).

Where a request cannot be made in writing, the PIO is supposed to render all reasonable assistance to the person making the request orally to reduce the same in writing (Section 6(1)).
The applicant need not give any reasons for requesting the information or any other personal details (Section 6(2)).

A fee will be charged for obtaining a copy of the documents. (The Central Government has prescribed fees of ₹ 2/- for each page created and copied. In some states the charges may vary.

Please see the fee rules chart). If the Information is not provided in the stipulated time limit then the information will be provided for free. (u/s 7(6)).

If the PIO feels that the sought information does not pertain to his department then it shall be his responsibility to forward the application to the related/relevant department within 5 days and also inform the applicant about the same.

In such instance, the stipulated time limit for provision of information would be 35 days (u/s 6(3)). In case PIO does not furnish information within the prescribed period or unreasonably troubles the applicant, then the applicant can file a complaint against him with the information commission.

In case a PIO without any reasonable cause fails to receive an application for information, malafidely denies a request for information, or knowingly gives incorrect, incomplete or misleading information, or asks for high fees for furnishing the information the applicant can file a direct complaint to the Central or the State Information Commission.

The PIO can deny information in some cases/matters. The various exemptions from disclosure of information are listed in Section 8 of the RTI Act, 2005. If the sought information is in public interest then the exemptions enumerated in Section 8 of the RTI Act, 2005 can also be disclosed.

Any information that cannot be denied to parliament or legislative assembly cannot be denied to a common citizen. In case a person fails to get a response from the PIO within the prescribed period or is aggrieved by the response received, or misuses Section 8 of the Act, then he/she can file an appeal within 30 days with an officer superior in rank to the PIO (first appellate authority) (Section 19(1)).

If the appellant is not happy with the 1st appeal then he/she can file a 2nd appeal with the State Information Commission or the Central Information Commission within 90 days (u/s 19(3).

In case a PIO fails to furnish the information asked for under the Act or fails to communicate the rejection order, within the time specified, he will be liable to pay a penalty of ₹ 250 per day for each day of delay, subject to a maximum of 25,000 (Section 20(1)).

The information commission can also recommend disciplinary action against the concerned PIO (Section 20(2)).

Question 2: Discuss in brief the composition and the powers of Central Information Commission (CIC) given under the right to Information Act, 2005.
Answer:

The composition and the powers of Central Information Commission (CIC) given under the right to Information Act, 2005

Term of Office and Conditions of Service of Central Information Commission Section 13 of the Right to Information Act provides that –

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. No Chief Information Commissioner shall hold office as such after he has Joer attained the age of sixty-five years.

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.

A CIC shall not be eligible for reappointment as such Information Commissioner. However, every CIC 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(3).

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.

The Chief Information Commissioner or an Information Commissioner shall, 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, before he enters upon his office.

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.

A Chief Information Commissioner or an Information Commissioner may be removed in the manner specified under section 14.

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.

Power to make rules by appropriate Government

Section 27 of the Right to Information Act states that the appropriate Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules to carry out the provisions of this Act, providing for all or any of the following matters, namely:

the cost of the medium or print cost price of the materials to be disseminated under section 4(4);
the fee payable under section 6(1);
the fee payable under section 7(1) & section 7(5);
the term of office of the Chief Information Commissioner and Information Commissioners under sub-sections (1) and (2) of section 13 and the State Chief Information Commissioner and State Information Commissioners under sub-sections (1) and (2) of section 16;
the salaries, allowances and other terms and conditions of service of the Chief Information Commissioner and the Information Commissioners under sub-section (5) of section 13 and the State Chief Information Commissioner and the State Information
Commissioners under sub-section (5) of section 16;
the salaries and allowances payable to and the terms and conditions of service of the officers and other employees under sub-section (6) of section 13 and sub-section (6) of section 16;
the procedure to be adopted by the Central Information Commission or State Information Commission, as the case may be, in deciding the appeals under sub-section (10) of section 19; and
any other matter which is required to be, or may be, prescribed. Space to write important points for revision

Question 3: Explain the provisions for appeal under the Right to Information Act, 2005.
Answer:

The provisions for appeal under the Right to Information Act, 2005

Any person who does not receive a decision within the specified time or is aggrieved by a decision of the Public Information Officer (PIO) may file an appeal under Section 19 of the Right to Information Act, 2005.

First Appeal: First appeal to the officer senior in rank to the PIO in the concerned Public Authority within 30 days from the expiry of the prescribed time limit or from the receipt of the decision (delay may be condoned by the Appellate Authority if sufficient cause is shown).

Second Appeal: Second appeal to the Central Information Commission or the State Information Commission as the case may be, within 90 days of the date on which the decision was given or should have been made by the First Appellate Authority (delay may be condoned by the Commission if sufficient cause is shown).

Question 4: Explain any four categories of ‘information’ which have been exempted from disclosure under the Right to Information Act, 2005.
Answer:

Categories of information which have been exempted from disclosure under the Right to Information Act, 2005. These are:

Where disclosure prejudicially affects 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 by any court or tribunal or the disclosure of which may constitute contempt of court;

Where disclosure would cause a breach of privilege of Parliament or the State Legislature;

Information including commercial confidence, trade secrets or intellectual property, where disclosure would harm competitive position of a third party, or available to a person in his fiduciary relationship, unless larger public interest so warrants;

Information received in confidence from a foreign government;

Information the disclosure of which endangers life or physical safety of any person or identifies confidential source of information or assistance;

Information that 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.

Question 5: State any four obligations of Public Authority prescribed under section 4 (1)(b) of the Right to lnformation Act,2005.
Answer:

Public authority:

The definition includes any authority or body or institution of self government established or constituted by or under the following:

The Constitution of India.
Any other law made by Parliament.
A law made by State Legislature.
A notification issued or order made by the appropriate Govt. [Section 2(h)]

Obligations of a Public Authority:

Section 4(1)(b) requires every public authority to publish within one hundred and twenty days of the enactment of this Act, the following details:

the details of its organization and the functions and duties performed by it.
the powers and duties of its officers and employees.
its decision making process, and information regarding its supervision and accountability.
how it performs its functions.

Question 6: Section 20 of the Right to Information Act, 2005 deals with the penalties imposed on a Public Information Officer (PIO). Explain.
Answer:

The Act imposes a penalty of ₹ 250 per day, up to a maximum of 25,000/- on a Public Information Officer (PIO) for failing to provide Information.

The PIO can be charged for the following offences:

not accepting an application.
delaying access to the information without reasonable cause.
denying information with a mala fide intention.
knowingly giving incomplete, incorrect or misleading information.
destroying information that has been requested; and
obstructing the furnishing of information in any manner.

The Information Commission (IC) at the Centre and States can impose this penalty. They can also recommend further disciplinary action against the PIO, in case of repeated offences. [Section 20]

Question 7: In R. P. Ltd. Vs. Indian Express Newspapers, the Supreme Court read into Article 21 – the right to know. Discuss how right to know is related to Right to Information under The Right of Information Act, 2005.
Answer:

Article 21 of the Constitution ensures personal liberty. The dimensions of personal liberty were extended by the case of R.P. Ltd. v. Proprietors Indian Express Newspapers, Bombay Pvt. Ltd., in which the Court observed that in a democracy, the people have a right to know and a right to be informed about the conduct of affairs of the State.

Moreover, generally knowledge is considered to be power, and the right information can bring to a person such power as well as it creates an environment of transparency in governance. When the administration is functioning transparently, the trust of the people is enhanced, and things in general, go more smoothly.

It is this right that is largely considered to be included in Article 21 that grew into the act known as the ‘Right to Information Act, 2002’. This Act accords to every citizen to request for information from a public authority, which is in turn, bound to furnish within a stipulated time of 30 days, generally.

Question 8: Discuss the term of office and conditions of service of Chief Information Commissioner and Information Commissioner under the Right to Information Act, 2005.
Answer:

Term and conditions of service of the CIC: The Central Information Commission consists of the Chief Information Commissioner and Central Information Commissioners not exceeding 10.

The CIC is responsible for general superintendence, direction and management of the affairs of the Commission, and in this, is assisted by the Information Commissioners. [Section 13 of the Right to Information Act, 2005 ] The CIC is to be appointed for a term of 5 years from date of entering into office or till the person attains the age of 65 years, whichever is earlier.

The CIC shall not be eligible for reappointment. The salary shall be the same as that of the Chief Election Commissioner. This will not be varied to the disadvantage of the CIC during the continuity of his/her service. (Section 13)

Some other important points to be noted in this regard:

Every Information Commissioner shall be eligible for appointment as the Chief Information Commissioner upon having vacated his office under this sub-section.

If the Information Commissioner is appointed as the Chief Information Commissioner, his term of office shall not be more than five years in aggregate, considering both the office of the Information Commissioner and that of the Chief Information Commissioner.

The Chief Information Commissioner or an Information Commissioner is required to take an oath or affirmation as per the First Schedule, before he enters upon his office.

The Chief Information Commissioner or an Information Commissioner has the right to resign from his office at any time, upon giving a notice to this effect in writing to the President.

The Chief Information Commissioner or an Information Commissioner may also be removed. The manner and the methodology for the same is provided in section 14.

The salaries and allowances and other terms and conditions of service of the Chief Information Commissioner and the Information Commissioners shall be determined by the Central Government.

Such officers and employees may be provided to the CIC or IC as are deemed essential for them to be able to perform efficiently their services; this shall be the prerogative of the Central Government. The salaries and no allowances and the terms and conditions of service of the officers and other.

Practical Questions

Bimal made an application in writing with prescribed fee to the Public Information Officer (PIO) for obtaining the information which is permissible under the relevant statute. The PIO neither provided the required information nor rejected the application of Bimal for providing the required information although a period of 45 days elapsed from the date of submitting the aforesaid application to the PIO. Bimal wants to file a suit in the civil court for not providing the required information to him. Advise Bimal.
Answer:

According to the Right to Information Act, 2005, no lower court is allowed to hear petition regarding suits or applications against any orders made under this Act (Section 23).

Under this Act, the Public Information Officer (PIO) has to provide the information within thirty days (Forty eight hours if the matter pertains to the life or liberty of another). If he takes no action, it is presumed to be deemed refusal (Section 7).

Bimal would be recommended not to file any suit in the civil court for not providing the required information to him. He may, however, approach the next higher authority in the public authority or organization within thirty days of deemed refusal or from expiry of the time required for making the decision or giving the information (Section 19).

He may also approach the State Information Commission, which may decide to impose penalty on the PIO (Section 20).

CS Executive JIGL – Right To Information Act, 2005 Question and Answers

Descriptive Questions

Practical Questions

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