By M C. Gupta (149)
B.Com (Hons) MBA AICWA, FCS, LLM

Meaning and Applicability of the Act

The Right to Information Act, 2005 came into force from 12th October, 2005 and extends to the whole of India except the State of Jammu and Kashmir. Right to Information includes a right to inspect works, documents, records, take notes, extracts or certified copies of the records, take certified samples of the materials, obtain information in form of print outs, diskettes, floppies, tapes, video cassettes or any other electronic mode or
through print outs.

What is Public Authority and what are the Obligations on it

Section 2(h) of the Act defines the term ‘Public Authority’ as any authority of body or institution of self-government established or constituted:- by or under the Constitution, by any other law made by the Parliament, by any other law made by the State Legislature, by any notification issued or order made by the appropriate government.

It is obligatory for the Public Authority to publish within one hundred and twenty days of the enactment various details. Some of them are as follows: the particulars of its organizations, functions and duties; power and duties of its officers and employees; procedure to be followed in the decision making process; rules, regulation, instructions, manuals, etc. used by its employees to discharge its functions; directory of its officers and employees; monthly remuneration received by its employees; so on and so forth.

Certain Information Exempt from Disclosures

Section 8 of the Act describes certain information which is exempt from disclosure. Some of them are as follows:- (1) certain information, disclosure of which would affect the sovereignty and integrity of India, the security, strategic, scientific or economic interests of the State; (2) Certain information disclosure of which is forbidden by the Court of Law of any Tribunal or the disclosure of which may constitute as the contempt of the Court; (3) information the disclosure of which may result in breach of privilege of Parliament or the State, Legislature; (4) information received in confidence from any foreign Government; (5) information which has no relativity to any public interest activity or which invades the privacy of the individual; (6) information including commercial confidence, trade secrets or intellectual property, disclosure of which would harm the competitive position of the third party, unless the public authority is of a view that it is in public interest to disclose such information, (7) notwithstanding anything said above a public authority may allow access to information if public interest in disclosure outweighs the protected interests, etc.

Who are Third Parties?

A third party means a person other than the citizen making a request for the information and includes a public authority.

PIO and their Duties

Public Information officers (PIO) are the officers designated by the Public Authorities in all administrative units or offices under it to provide information to the citizens requesting information under the Act. Any officer requested by the PIO to assist in performing his duties shall provide such assistance to the PIO and such other officer shall also be treated as a PIO. Following shall mainly constitute as the duties of a PIO:- (1) he shall deal with requests from persons seeking information, (2) if the information requested is held by any other public authority then PIO shall transfer the request to such other authority and inform the applicant about it, (3) he may seek assistance of other officers for proper discharge of his/her duties, (4) he shall in any case within 30 days of the receipt of request and on payment of requisite fees either provide the applicant with the information or reject the request for any reasons specified in Section 8 or 9, (5) If the request concerns the life or liberty of any person then such information shall be provided within 48 hours, (6) In case of rejection of the request the PIO shall inform the applicant regarding the reasons for rejection, period within which appeal can be made against such rejection and particulars of the Appellate Authority.

How to request information and details regarding the fees

(1) Application to be made in writing or electronically to the PIO specifying the particulars of the information sought. (2) Reasons for seeking information need not be mentioned. (3) Application fees shall be reasonable and further fees if required must be intimated in writing calculating details as to how the amount was arrived. (4) No fees shall be charged from people living below the poverty line. (5) If information is not provided within the time limit specified then no fees shall be charged.

Central Information Commission

Central Information Commission to be constituted by the Central. Government through a Gazette notification. It shall consist of one Chief Information Commissioners (CIC) and not more than ten Information Commissioners (IC) and they shall be appointed by the President of India. CIC and IC’s shall be appointed for a period of 5 years or till he attains the age of 65 whichever is earlier and they shall not be eligible for reappointment.

State Information Commission

State Information Commission to be constituted by the State Government through a Gazette notification and it shall consist of 1 State Chief Information Commissioner (SCIC) and not more than 10 State Information Commissioners (SIC) to be appointed by the Governor.

Rule Making Power

Central Government, State Government and the Competent Authority are vested with powers to make rules to carry out the provisions of the Right to Information Act, 2005. If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of the Act, the Central Government may, by Order published in Official Gazette, make provisions necessary / expedient for removing the difficulty.