When a government office ignores you, this is what you use.
Every other page on this site tells you which form to file and which office to file it at. This is the page for when you did all that and nothing happened. RTI is not a complaint. It's a law with a deadline and a personal penalty attached — and it is the cheapest leverage a citizen has.
What RTI actually does
Most people think it's for journalists and activists. It's mostly for people whose ordinary paperwork got stuck.
"Give me a copy"
A certified copy of a deed, a khatiyan entry, your own file. If the office is sitting on it, RTI compels them to hand it over or state a legal reason.
"What happened to my application?"
Ask for the current status, the file notings, the name of the officer holding it, and the date it reached them. Asking for the notings is what makes files move — it means someone will read who sat on it.
"Why was I rejected?"
If a scheme, mutation or claim was refused, ask for the reason recorded in the file and the rule it relied on. Very often no reason was ever written down — which is itself the answer.
If you're in Bihar — you can file by phone
Bihar has something no other state does, and almost nobody outside Bihar knows it exists.
File an RTI by calling a number
You call, an operator writes your RTI for you, and it gets filed. Set up in January 2007 specifically to bridge the literacy and digital divide — "information at your doorstep". It has been running ever since and was awarded Best E-Governance Initiative by the Government of India.
155311 — application line
(premium rate, BSNL)
155310 — enquiry line
(normal tariff)
You don't need to write, type, or travel
If your land is stuck in a great-grandfather's name, the person who most needs the record is often the person least able to draft a legal application in English on a government website. That's exactly who Jaankari was built for.
The portal also handles 1st Appeal, 2nd Appeal, and application tracking online.
Central or state? Get this right first
Filing with the wrong government is the most common wasted month.
| Your subject | Which government | Where to file |
|---|---|---|
| Land records, khatiyan, mutation, survey, police, revenue | State | Your state's RTI portal, or post to the PIO of that office. Bihar: Jaankari. |
| Passport, income tax, railways, central ministries, nationalised banks | Central | rtionline.gov.in |
| Municipal, panchayat, state electricity board | State / local body | The body's own PIO. |
The templates
Replace the highlighted parts. Keep it boring, factual, and short. An RTI is not a letter of complaint — the more you argue, the easier you are to reject.
1 · Asking for a document
RTI application under Section 6(1)
To,The Public Information Officer,
name and full address of the office
Subject: Request for information under the Right to Information Act, 2005
Sir/Madam,
I request the following information under Section 6(1) of the Right to Information Act, 2005:
1. A certified copy of describe the document exactly — khatiyan/deed/entry, with khata, khesra, mouza, anchal, district, and year if known.
2. If the said record is not available or not held by your office, please state that fact and inform me which public authority holds it, and transfer this application to that authority under Section 6(3) of the Act.
I am enclosing an application fee of ₹10 by IPO / court fee stamp / DD / cash receipt.
Please provide the information within 30 days as required under Section 7(1).
Yours faithfully,
name
full postal address
phone
Date: date
Place: place
2 · When your application has been ignored
This is the one that works. Asking who is holding your file, since when, and for the notings, changes the incentives — because now a name is attached to the delay.
RTI application — status of a pending application
To,The Public Information Officer,
office name and address
Subject: Information under the RTI Act, 2005 regarding application dated date
Sir/Madam,
I submitted an application for what — mutation / certified copy / scheme benefit on date, receipt/reference number number. No decision has been communicated to me. Under Section 6(1) of the RTI Act, 2005, please provide:
1. The current status of the said application.
2. The date on which it was received in your office.
3. The name and designation of every officer with whom the file has been pending, and the period it was pending with each.
4. Copies of all file notings and correspondence on the said application.
5. The prescribed time limit within which such applications are to be disposed of, and the reason for the delay in this case.
6. The action proposed to be taken and the date by which it will be completed.
Fee of ₹10 is enclosed by mode.
Yours faithfully,
name, address, phone, date, place
3 · First Appeal — no reply in 30 days
First Appeal under Section 19(1) — no fee
To,The First Appellate Authority,
same office — the FAA is an officer senior to the PIO
Subject: First Appeal under Section 19(1) of the RTI Act, 2005
Sir/Madam,
I filed an RTI application dated date with the PIO, office (registration/diary number, if any).
Choose one: No reply has been received within the 30 days prescribed under Section 7(1), which is a deemed refusal under Section 7(2). OR The reply received on date is incomplete/misleading for the following reasons: state them plainly, point by point.
I request that the PIO be directed to provide the information sought. As the statutory period has lapsed, the information is to be provided free of cost under Section 7(6).
Yours faithfully,
name, address, phone, date, place
Enclosed: copy of the original RTI application, proof of fee, and any reply received.
The escalation ladder
Each rung is free. Keep every acknowledgement — the next rung depends on proving you did the last one.
| Step | Who | When | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| RTI application · s.6(1) | PIO of the office | Reply due in 30 days. 48 hours if it concerns life or liberty. | ₹10 (central). Free for BPL. |
| First Appeal · s.19(1) | First Appellate Authority — senior to the PIO, same office | File within 30 days. Decided within 30 days. | Free |
| Second Appeal · s.19(3) | State Information Commission, or CIC for central bodies | File within 90 days of the First Appeal decision or its lapse. | Free |
| Penalty · s.20 | Imposed only by the Information Commission — never the FAA | Where the PIO refused, delayed, misled, or destroyed records without reasonable cause. | ₹250/day, max ₹25,000 — from the officer's own pocket |
How RTIs get rejected
Almost always for form, not substance. Avoid these and most refusals evaporate.
Asking a question instead of asking for a record
RTI gets you information held on record — not opinions, explanations, or answers invented for you. "Why has my mutation not been done?" can be refused. "Copies of all file notings on application no. X dated Y" cannot. Same objective, different reception. Ask for documents, and let the documents answer the question.
Explaining why you want it
Section 6(2): you are not required to give any reason. Don't. Every sentence of background story is a sentence someone can argue with, and a reason you supply is a reason that can be judged inadequate. Keep it to what you want.
Being vague about the record
"All papers about my land" invites "please specify". Give khata, khesra, mouza, anchal, district, year, application numbers, dates — everything you know. Precision is what makes refusal difficult.
Filing with the wrong authority and giving up
If you file with the wrong office, Section 6(3) obliges them to transfer it to the right one within 5 days — not to reject it. Cite 6(3) in the application (the templates above do) and the "not our department" reply stops being an ending.
Missing the appeal deadline
30 days for the First Appeal, 90 for the Second. Diarise them the day you file. An unappealed refusal simply stands, however wrong it was.
Not keeping proof
Keep the postal receipt, the acknowledgement, the diary number, screenshots of online filings. The appeal is built on proving what you sent and when. Send by registered post with acknowledgement due if filing on paper.
What RTI won't do
Being honest about the limits, so you don't waste a month.
It won't decide your dispute
RTI gets you the record. It does not settle who owns the land. If someone else is in possession, you need a lawyer and a court — RTI only arms you with the paperwork.
It won't reach private bodies
Only public authorities, and bodies substantially financed by government. A private bank or company is out of reach — though the regulator is not.
Section 8 exemptions are real
Some information can be legitimately withheld — personal information of third parties, matters under investigation, and others. But it must be reasoned. A refusal that cites no section at all is not a refusal, it's a delay.