Frequently Asked Questions and Answers

PIO is the provider of information and not the seeker. There is no provision in the Act to consider such appeals or complaints by the PIO against an order of the first Appellate Authority.

The PIO and AA are statutorily designated offices. They shall perform their function as per the provisions of the Act and hence cannot be instructed or forced to take decisions pertaining to RTI.

Question: Can a request be denied if it is too big? If not, how can such requests be handled best? How much information can a citizen request in one application? or If one asks 20-30 different sets of information in one application, should it be given? Or should the citizen be asked to put in fresh applications for each point of information requested and also be asked to pay application fees every time?

ANSWER: The Act does not permit the rejection of an application simply because it relates to a large number of documents.. If a large number of records are involved in relation to a request, the PIO can contact the requestor / summon him to the office to verify the records and facilitate photocopies of the required documents on payment of the prescribed fee.This recognizes the fact that in some cases at least, a broad application may be submitted simply because the requestor was not sure what was available.