Allahabad High Court
NARENDRA SINGH RATHIversusSTATE OF U.P. AND ANOTHER
- Decided
- Bench
- VINOD DIWAKAR
Holding
The Court directed the State Information Commission to decide the pending RTI appeal within six weeks, without addressing the merits of the underlying request.
Summary
The petitioner filed a writ petition seeking a direction to the State Information Commission to decide his RTI appeal filed on 30 September 2025 under Section 19(1) of the Right to Information Act, 2005. The appeal remained pending beyond the statutory period of 30 days, extendable to 45 days, as required by Section 19(6) of the Act. The petitioner argued that this delay violated the statutory mandate for timely disposal. The High Court examined the grievance, noting it was limited to the expeditious disposal of the pending appeal and did not delve into the merits of the underlying RTI request. The Court ordered the respondent to decide the appeal within six weeks of receiving the certified copy of the order, thereby granting the petition and directing compliance with the statutory timeline.
Issues considered
- Whether the statutory appeal under Section 19(1) of the Right to Information Act, 2005 must be decided within the period prescribed under Section 19(6).
- Whether the High Court can issue a direction to the State Information Commission to expedite the disposal of a pending RTI appeal.
Legislation cited
- Right to Information Act, 2005 — s. 19(1), 19(6)
Subjects
- Right to Information
- Section 19
- Statutory appeal
- Expeditious disposal
- Administrative law
- Writ petition
Judgment
HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT ALLAHABAD
WRIT - C No. - 7591 of 2026
Narendra Singh Rathi
.....Petitioner(s)
Versus
State of U.P. and Another
.....Respondent(s)
Counsel for Petitioner(s) : Akash Tomar, Pranshu Gupta
Counsel for Respondent(s) : C.S.C.
Court No. - 37
HON'BLE VINOD DIWAKAR, J.
1. Heard learned counsel for the petitioner, learned Standing Counsel for the
State, and perused the record.
2. The present petition has been filed seeking a direction to respondent no. 2
to decide the petitioner's statutory appeal filed under Section 19(1) of the
Right to Information Act, 2005 within a stipulated period.
3. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the petitioner had initially
sought certain information under the provisions of the Right to Information
Act, 2005. Aggrieved by the response of the Public Information Officer, the
petitioner preferred a first appeal dated 30.09.2025 under Section 19(1) of
the Act before respondent no.2.
4. It is contended that despite the lapse of a considerable period, the said
appeal has not been decided till date. Learned counsel submits that under
Section 19(6) of the Right to Information Act, 2005, the appeal is required to
be disposed of within 30 days, extendable to 45 days for reasons to be
recorded in writing. The continued pendency of the appeal is, therefore,
contrary to the statutory mandate.
5. Having considered the submissions advanced and upon perusal of the
record, this Court finds that the grievance of the petitioner is limited and
relates to expeditious disposal of the pending statutory appeal.
6. In view of the above, without entering into the merits of the claim, the
present petition is disposed of with a direction to the respondent no. 2 to
consider and decide the petitioner's appeal dated 30.09.2025, filed under
WRIC No. 7591 of 2026
2
Section 19(1) of the Right to Information Act, 2005, expeditiously,
preferably within a period of six weeks from the date of receipt of a certified
copy of this order, in accordance with law.
April 20, 2026
Anil K. Sharma
(Vinod Diwakar,J.)
Digitally signed by :-
ANIL KUMAR SHARMA
High Court of Judicature at Allahabad
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