DR.

RAM MANOHAR LOHIA NATIONAL

LAW UNIVERSITY, LUCKNOW

BASICS OF LEGISLATION
Final draft on:
Study of Right to Information Act, 2005

Submitted to:

Submitted by:

Mr. Shashank shekhar

Sakshi

Asst. Professor

B.A.LL.B (II SEM.)

Roll no. - 111

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
A major research project like this is never the work of anyone alone. Firstly, I would like to thank my
teacher Mr. Shashank shekar, for giving me such a golden opportunity to show my skills and
capability through this project.
This project is the result of the extensive ultra-pure study, hard work and labour, put into to make it
worth reading. This project has been completed through the generous co-operation of various persons,
my teacher, and my seniors, who, in their different potentials helped me a lot in giving the finishing
touch to the project.
This project couldnt be completed without the help of my universitys library Dr. Madhu Limaye
Library and its internet facility.

Thank you.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. Objective
2. Research methodology
3. Literature review
4. Introduction
5. Reason behind bringing out this legislation.
6. Incidents of using RTI
7. Procedure of getting information
8. Time limit to get information
9. Fee structure for application
10. Exclusion clauses
11. Merits of the act
12. Demerits of the act.

OBJECTIVE

The objective of this project is to study the right to information act, 2005. This study will
contain the reasons for making this legislation, how this legislation was made, cases related to
this legislation, procedure to file RTI and critical analysis of legislation.
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
This research will be entirely based upon the Doctrinal method of study. It will use primary
and secondary sources. Books, journals, web sources, government websites will be used for
making project.
This is an analytical and explanatory research work.
LITERATURE REVIEW
RTI act: This whole act and all the provisions of the act.

INTRODUCTION
Right to information act was brought up in the year 2005. It is the act of parliament which
makes government obligatory to give information about government offices to the citizens. It
promotes transparency and accountability in the working of every public authority. In order to
ensure greater and more effective access to information, it was decided to repeal the Freedom
of Information Act, 2002 and enact another law for providing an effective framework. To
achieve this object, the Right to Information Bill was introduced in the Parliament and was
passed by the Lok Sabha on 11th May, 2005 and by the Rajya Sabha on 12th May, 2005 and
it received the assent on 15th June, 2005. It came on the Statute Book as THE RIGHT TO
INFORMATION ACT, 2005 (22 of 2005). This act applies to all states and UTs of India
except the state of Jammu and Kashmir. Under the provision of this act, any citizen may
request reasonable information from public authority and they have to provide this
information within reasonable time period. First time the RTI was filed in Pune police station.
Private bodies are not within the ambit of this act directly. Political parties are also not in
the ambit of this act, earlier they were considered as public authority but in august 2013
government introduced a RTI (amendment) act under which political parties are not public
authority. It is an initiative taken by Department of Personnel and Training, Ministry of
Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions to provide a RTI Portal Gateway to the citizens
for quick search of information on the details of first Appellate Authorities, PIOs etc.

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.1 It is a very useful method for finding out information on any public authority
and it is helpful in keeping vigilance on the government offices.
The right to information is implicitly guaranteed by the Constitution. This law is very
comprehensive and covers almost all matters of governance. This Law has a wide reach,
being applicable to Government at all levels-Union, State and Local as well as to the
recipients of substantial government funds. Right to information is a part of FR under
article 19(1) of the constitution. Article 19(1) says that every citizen has freedom of speech
and expression. Case studies and media reports show that RTI is being used to redress
individual grievances, access entitlements such as ration cards and pensions, investigate
government policies and decisions, and expose corruption and misuse of government
resources. Social activist Aruna Roy has described Indias RTI Act as the most fundamental
law this country has seen as it can be used from the local panchayat (a unit of local
government) to parliament, from a nondescript village to posh Delhi, and from ration shops to
the 2G scam.2 RTI Act is fast emerging as an effective anti-corruption tool. Information can
be demanded from all Public authorities, ie. all Govt. bodies and organizations substantially
financed by Government including NGOs and aided schools and Colleges.
REASON BEHIND BRINGING OUT THIS LEGISLATION:
This Act is a big step towards making the citizens informed about the activities of the
Government. 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.3
1 http://rti.gov.in/RTICorner/Guide_2013-issue.pdf

2 http://asiafoundation.org/in-asia/2011/09/28/right-to-information-in-india-an-effective-tool-totackle-corruption/
3 RTI act 2005

The basic object of the Right to Information Act is to empower the citizens, to promote
transparency and accountability in the working of the Government, to contain corruption, and
to enhance peoples participation in democratic process thereby making our democracy work
for the people in a real sense. The Act is a big step towards making the citizens informed
about the activities of the Government.4 An informed citizen is better equipped to keep
necessary vigil on the instruments of governance and make the government more accountable
to the governed. RTI is the way to empowering villages. RTI is like a life line to the rural
India. The Act has shown a great potential to transform the life of rural society.
However, with a view to set out a practical regime for the citizens to secure information a
matter of right, the Indian Parliament enacted the Right to Information Act, 2005.
Lack of information denies people the opportunity to develop their potential to the
fullest and realise the full range of their human rights. Access to information ensures a
participatory democracy, tackles the malaise of corruption, strengthens peoples trust in
the government, supports equitable, just and people centric development. In 1975 itself
the SC observed that in a responsible government as ours, where all the agencies of
public service must be responsible for their conduct, there can be only few confidential
matters. The people of the country have a right to know the details about the
functionaries function. In this context, SC judgements have made it mandatory for
candidates to disclose certain information while contesting election. RTI activist
Shekhar Singh said that the main objective of Indias RTI movement was to empower
people, concluding that this law has done that given the people the power to
challenge their government. That is no small thing.5

INCIDENTS OF USING RTI

Civil society organizations here have played an important role in raising public awareness
about RTI and assisting citizens in filing requests for information.
For example, Delhi-based NGO Satark Nagarik Sangathan (SNS) runs an information centre
in South Delhi to assist local residents and slum dwellers to file RTI applications. Using RTI,
4 http://rti.gov.in/RTICorner/Guide_2013-issue.pdf

5 asiafoundation.org/in-asia/2011/09/28/right-to-information-in-india-an-effective-tool-to-tacklecorruption/

SNS has successfully campaigned for improvements in the quality of public services
including water, sanitation, the public distribution system, and even the performance of local
elected representatives. In addition to such initiatives, the law is increasingly being used to
tackle high profile corruption. Much of the information regarding corruption in the allocation
of tenders and contracts for last years Commonwealth Games was unearthed using RTI. In
2010, a series of RTI applications filed by the Housing and Land Rights Network, a Delhibased NGO, revealed that the Delhi government had diverted funds from its social welfare
programs for infrastructure development under the Commonwealth Games.
With many a success story in cities, the Right to Information Act, is reaching the rural areas
too with villages using its provisions to redress their grievances.
In 2010, K.S. Sagaria, a resident of Kushmal village in rural Orissa, filed an RTI
application seeking information on the number of ponds constructed in his village under
the governments national wage employment scheme. The information he received was
revealing: the ponds had never been constructed even though money had been allocated
and spent. Following complaints from villagers, the local administration was forced to
take action and suspend the officials involved in the pond scam.
Sidhakahna Jot Keshav village in Bahraich district of Uttar Pradesh is one such
example.
Five inspired residents of the village filed RTI applications and questioned the district
administration about the conditions of the village roads and drains. They also raised
questions as why there were no allotments under the Indira Awaas Yojna. The
administration immediately acted and the construction of the roads and drains began in
the village. Since then, 32 villagers have been allotted the houses under the Indira Awaas
Yojna and the administration has displayed a list on the village wall, containing the
names of the villagers eligible for the allotments under the scheme.
In Allahabad, daily wagers had a tough time arranging a proper meal as they were not
receiving rations on their cards. Some 21 villagers prepared RTI applications and
questioned the administration. The very next day all the ration card holders got their
rations.

PRODECURE OF GETTING INFORMATION:

The RTI Act prescribes a very simple procedure for obtaining information. Sec. 6 of this act
provides:
1. Apply in writing or through electronic means in English or Hindi or in the official
language of the area, to the PIO, specifying the particulars of the information sought
for.
2. Reason for seeking information are not required to be given;
3. Pay fees as may be prescribed (if not belonging to the below poverty line category).
The essential requirements of an application filed under the RTI Act are:
(a) The applicant should be a citizen of India.
(b) The application should contain the particulars of information sought.
(c) The evidence of payment of application fee should be enclosed.
(d) The address of the applicant should be available for sending a reply.
Each authority covered by the RTI Act must appoint their Public Information Officer (PIO).
Any person may submit a written request to the PIO for information. It is the PIO's obligation
to provide information to citizens of India who request information under the Act. If the
request pertains to another public authority, it is the PIO's responsibility to transfer/forward
the concerned portions of the request to a PIO of the other authority within 5 working days.
Every public authority is required to designate Assistant Public Information Officers (APIOs)
to receive RTI requests and appeals for forwarding to the PIOs of their public authority.

TIME LIMIT TO GET INFORMATION

The Act specifies time limits for replying to the request.

If the request has been made to the PIO, the reply is to be given within 30 days of
receipt.

If the request has been made to an APIO, the reply is to be given within 35 days of
receipt.

If the PIO transfers the request to another public authority (better concerned with the
information requested), the time allowed to reply is 30 days but computed from the
day after it is received by the PIO of the transferee authority.

Information concerning corruption and Human Rights violations by scheduled

Security agencies (those listed in the Second Schedule to the Act) is to be provided
within 45 days but with the prior approval of the Central Information Commission.

However, if life or liberty of any person is involved, the PIO is expected to reply
within 48 hours.

Since the information is to be paid for, the reply of the PIO is necessarily limited to
either denying the request (in whole or part) and/or providing a computation of
"further fees". The time between the reply of the PIO and the time taken to deposit
the further fees for information is excluded from the time allowed. If information is
not provided within this period, it is treated as deemed refusal. Refusal with or
without reasons may be ground for appeal or complaint. Further, information not
provided in the times prescribed is to be provided free of charge.

FEE STRUCTURE FOR APPLICATION

1. Application fees to be prescribed which must be reasonable.
2. If further fees are required, then the same must be intimated in writing with
calculation details of how the figure was arrived at;
3. Applicant can seek review of the decision on fees charged by the PIO by applying to
the appropriate Appellate Authority;
4. No fees will be charged from people living below the poverty line
5. Applicant must be provided information free of cost if the PIO fails to comply with
the prescribed time limit.

EXCLUSION CLAUSE
Exclusions of organization:
Central Intelligence and Security agencies specified in 2 nd schedule like IB, Directorate
General of Income tax(Investigation), RAW, Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI),
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 could be given but only with the
approval of the Central or State Information Commission.

Exclusion of information:
The following is exempt from disclosure under section 8 of the Act:

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 offense;

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 (but it is also provided that the information
which cannot be denied to the Parliament or a State Legislature shall not be denied by
this exemption);

A central public information officer or state public information officer, as the case
may be, may reject a request for information where such a request for providing
access would involve an infringement of copyright subsisting in a person other
than the state.

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.
However, this does not apply to disclosure of "trade or commercial secrets protected by law.

MERITS OF THE ACT

1. The Act is influencing people to come forward and question the progress on
various welfare schemes, creating a positive change in the most backward areas
like Eastern UP, Bihar, Jharkhand, and Madhya Pradesh, Assam and in
Maharashtra.
2. It provides information within reasonable time: The law mandates that the
information has to be given within 30 days. As time period is fixed to provide
information. Every authority has different time period to give information and if
within this time period person do not get information, he can file appeal.
3. Option of appeal: If information is not provided or wrongly refused, the Citizen
can go in appeal to an Appellate Authority who would be an official in the same
department, senior to the PIO. The Appellate authority has to give a decision in
30 days. If this too does not give a satisfactory result, one can appeal to the
State or Central Information Commissioner, which is an independent
Constitutional Authority, established under the Act.
4. Penalty for delay: The Act provides for a penalty for delay on the PIO at a rate of
Rs. 250 per day of delay, or for malafide denial of information, or giving false
information. In case of information being delayed, no charges for information are
to be paid. The penal provisions on the PIO are the real teeth of the Act,
which ensure that the PIO cannot treat Citizens demands for information in
a cavalier manner.
5. Financially reasonable: At the price of Rs.10, it provides the facility for Citizens
to get information on the Government's actions and decisions. If you send your
application by registered post or courier, the extra cost will be about 10 to 25
Rupees. The cost of getting the information of about five pages would be Rs. 10/.
Even if you add the postage cost of getting the information the total will be about
70 rupees. If a few thousand Citizens spend about Rs. 70 per month and about an
hour in their own house they can file a new RTI application and get information
about matters, which concern them.
6. Empowerment of the common man: the entire range of common man in the
nation has been empowered by such an initiative in which they have got the
full rights to be informed about anything that affects their directly or
indirectly and the responsible bodies have to answer them positively.

7. Easy mode of spreading information rightfully: the RTI has incubated a very
concrete and easy node of spreading information of all kind in all form where apt
information will be received by only the person concerned and this will in turn
result in easy accessibility to information on one hand and time conservation of
all.
8. Protection of information: since, the selected people with selected queries will be
entertained and informed rightfully and aptly, so this will lead to protection of
information thereby protecting everyone from being wringly or inappropriately
informed or misinformed.
9. Corruption will decrease gradually: if a person being asks for information on
certain products and services and the answer has to be delivered by a competent
and responsible authority then the chances of corruption will certainly minimize.
People will not have to bother about being cheated or victims of frauds and scams.

DEMERITS OF THE ACT

1. Unnecessary chaos all over: There is a big drawback that sustains in our nation,
and that is a fact that in this immensely populated nation and that is the habit to
create unnecessary disturbance and chaos over a newly incorpated plan just to
create nuisance. Cases have been filed against fetching wrong information and
asking for abrupt information from different official at various levels and this
creates nothing but an overall chaos.
2. An extra burden to the authorities: Since the authorized persons are already having
loads of works and tasks to be delivered at their end and after this new act passed,
they have additional burden to be done and delivered.
3. Multiple public information officers (PIO): The government has appointed multiple
PIOs. This results in running of citizens from office to office in search of correct PIO
who can yield correct information.
4. Peoples accessibility is hectic and time consuming: There are many offices of PIO
where the access of common man is very prolonged and it becomes very hectic to
carry out the process. The subsystems created beneath the system are basically
problematic.
5. The true potential of RTI is still to be explored, especially in the rural India where
villagers find it very cumbersome to file RTI applications. The procedure should be
simplified and made people friendly.

6.

Exclusion clause is ambiguous as in sec 8(1) talks about exclusion of some specific
information but with this sec.8(2) says that if these information are of public interest
in disclosure outweighs the harm to the protected interests then it will be allowed to
give information.

CONCLUSION
RTI is an effective way of parliament through which citizens can get information on any
matters to government or public offices. This act is successful in bringing out the
transparency in the working of government and to make government free from corruption. It
is an initiative step toward making governmental function more functioned. We are living in
democratic country, here people have right to speak or have eye in the function which are of
national important. RTI is also our fundamental right. It provides a reasonable able way
financially and also supported time wise. Now days, it is also getting high. It is a burning
issue of recent time as people want more transparency in the offices.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Right_to_Information_Act
2. http://righttoinformation.gov.in/
3. http://rti.gov.in/RTICorner/Guide_2013-issue.pdf
4. http://asiafoundation.org/in-asia/2011/09/28/right-to-information-in-india-aneffective-tool-to-tackle-corruption/
5. http://importanceofrtiact.blogspot.in/2011/08/importance-right-to-informationact.html

6. http://shaktivahini.org/initiatives/right-to-information
7. https://sites.google.com/site/edwinsequeirasite/1st-page/importance-of-r-t-i