How to file First Appeal
A guide on how to file a First Appeal under RTI Act 2005
A First Appeal is the remedy specified in the Section 19(1) of the Right to Information Act, 2005 that can be used in case:
- The PIO fails to furnish the requested information within a period of 30 days.
- The information provided is incorrect or deemed unsatisfactory by the citizen.
- You are a 3rd party consulted by PIO during the process of an application as the information might relate to you, but are unsatisfied with the decision of the PIO.
- The PIO acts in a manner that goes against the spirit of the RTI Act. For e.g charging excessive fee for disclosing the information.
A First Appeal is submitted to a FAA or First Appellate Authority who is a designated officer higher in rank to the PIO.
Time Limits to file First Appeal
30 days from the date you received or should have received the reply of the RTI application from the PIO.
Address of FAA
If you received some form of a response from the PIO, the name & address of the First Appellate Authority is usually provided at the end of the reply.
If the address is not provided in the PIO’s response or you never received a response in the first place, you should visit the website of the Public Authority your application refers to and search for the RTI section. Most of the Public Authorities provide the details of the PIOs and FAAs on their websites.
Note that you should use the designation & not the name of the FAA while addressing the application i.e Use First Appellate Authority & not Mr. Mukesh Sharma.
Format of First Appeal
There is no specific format provided for First Appeal applications to Central Public Authorities & most of the State Public Authorities. A few key guidelines are provided which we have included in the format given below
Click here for First Appeal Format
Go to File > Download As to choose your preferred file format.
For state specific formats visit the appropriate state’s RTI website as given here.
Fee for First Appeal
There is no fee for filing a First Appeal with any Central Public Authority & most of the States.
Some states like Maharashtra & Madhya Pradesh have set a fee for First Appeals in contravention with the RTI Act. The fees for the respective states can be found out by visiting the RTI portals of the states as given here.
The fee can be paid by IPO/Demand Draft/Banker’s Cheque or as specified in the state RTI rules.
Process for First Appeal
- Fill the appeal application as per the format provided above. As specified in the format you can also request a personal hearing before the FAA if needed. Make sure to sign the appeal as requested at the bottom of the application.
- Attach self-attested copies of the original RTI application, PIO reply if any, postal receipts, delivery proof, supporting documents to the Appeal application. Self attested means to sign the pages & write ‘attested’ on them by hand.
- Address the Appeal to the correct First Appellate Authority and make a copy of the Appeal application and keep it safe for future reference.
- Post the Appeal application either by SpeedPost or by Registered Post AD only. Keep the postal receipt safe for future reference.
- You should hear from the FAA within 30 days of him/her receiving your First Appeal. If you don’t receive a reply or you are unsatisfied with the decision of FAA, you can then file a Second Appeal with State Information Commission or Central Information Commission.
If you have any further queries related to RTI/Appeals, feel free to reach us at https://rtilikho.com/contact and we shall try our best to assist you. You can also join our community chat at https://chat.rtilikho.org where other users and activists can help you.
If you do not wish to file the First Appeal manually, we request you to use our service at https://rtilikho.com for the application drafting and filing. We charge a very nominal fee for doing so. Since we are a non-profit you can rest assured that any revenue we generate is only used for a good cause which is to help more people file RTI applications.
