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21 |
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No suit, prosecution or
other legal proceeding shall lie against any person for anything which
is in good faith done or intended to be done under this Act or any rule
made thereunder. |
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22 |
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The provisions of this Act
shall have effect notwithstanding anything inconsistent therewith
contained in the Official Secrets Act, 1923, and any other law for the
time being in force or in any instrument having effect by virtue of any
law other than this Act. |
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23 |
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No court shall entertain any
suit, application or other proceeding in respect of any order made under
this Act and no such order shall be called in question otherwise than by
way of an appeal under this Act. |
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24 |
(1) |
|
Nothing contained in this
Act shall apply to the intelligence and security organisations specified
in the Second Schedule, being organisations established by the Central
Government or any information furnished by such organisations to that
Government: |
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|
|
Provided
that the information pertaining to the allegations of corruption and
human rights violations shall not be excluded under this sub-section: |
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|
Provided further that in the
case of information sought for is in respect of allegations of violation
of human rights, the information shall only be provided after the
approval of the Central Information Commission, and notwithstanding
anything contained in section 7, such information shall be provided
within forty-five days from the date of the receipt of request. |
| |
(2) |
|
The Central Government may,
by notification in the Official Gazette, amend the Schedule by including
therein any other intelligence or security organisation established by
that Government or omitting therefrom any organisation already specified
therein and on the publication of such notification, such organisation
shall be deemed to be included in or, as the case may be, omitted from
the Schedule. |
| |
(3) |
|
Every notification issued
under sub-section (2) shall be laid before each House of Parliament. |
| |
(4) |
|
Nothing contained in this
Act shall apply to such intelligence and security organisation being
organisations established by the State Government, as that Government
may, from time to time, by notification in the Official Gazette,
specify: |
| |
|
|
Provided that the
information pertaining to the allegations of corruption and human rights
violations shall not be excluded under this sub-section: |
| |
|
|
Provided further that in the
case of information sought for is in respect of allegations of violation
of human rights, the information shall only be provided after the
approval of the State Information Commission and, notwithstanding
anything contained in section 7, such information shall be provided
within forty-five days from the date of the receipt of request. |
| |
(5) |
|
Every notification issued
under sub-section (4) shall be laid before the State Legislature. |
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25 |
(1) |
|
The Central Information
Commission or State Information Commission, as the case may be, shall,
as soon as practicable after the end of each year, prepare a report on
the implementation of the provisions of this Act during that year and
forward a copy thereof to the appropriate Government. |
| |
(2) |
|
Each Ministry or Department
shall, in relation to the public authorities within their jurisdiction,
collect and provide such information to the Central Information
Commission or State Information Commission, as the case may be, as is
required to prepare the report under this section and comply with the
requirements concerning the furnishing of that information and keeping
of records for the purposes of this section. |
| |
(3) |
|
Each report shall state in
respect of the year to which the report relates,— |
| |
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(a) |
the number of requests made
to each public authority; |
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|
(b) |
the number of decisions
where applicants were not entitled to access to the documents pursuant
to the requests, the provisions of this Act under which these decisions
were made and the number of times such provisions were invoked; |
| |
|
(c) |
the number of appeals
referred to the Central Information Commission or State Information
Commission, as the case may be, for review, the nature of the appeals
and the outcome of the appeals; |
| |
|
(d) |
particulars of any
disciplinary action taken against any officer in respect of the
administration of this Act; |
| |
|
(e) |
the amount of charges
collected by each public authority under this Act; |
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(f) |
any facts which indicate an
effort by the public authorities to administer and implement the spirit
and intention of this Act; |
| |
|
(g) |
recommendations for reform,
including recommendations in respect of the particular public
authorities, for the development, improvement, modernisation, reform or
amendment to this Act or other legislation or common law or any other
matter relevant for operationalising the right to access information. |
| |
(4) |
|
The Central Government or
the State Government, as the case may be, may, as soon as practicable
after the end of each year, cause a copy of the report of the Central
Information Commission or the State Information Commission, as the case
may be, referred to in sub-section (1) to be laid before each House of
Parliament or, as the case may be, before each House of the State
Legislature, where there are two Houses, and where there is one House of
the State Legislature before that House. |
| |
(5) |
|
If it appears to the Central
Information Commission or State Information Commission, as the case may
be, that the practice of a public authority in relation to the exercise
of its functions under this Act does not conform with the provisions or
spirit of this Act, it may give to the authority a recommendation
specifying the steps which ought in its opinion to be taken for
promoting such conformity. |
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26 |
(1) |
|
The appropriate Government
may, to the extent of availability of financial and other resources,— |
| |
|
(a) |
develop and organise
educational programmes to advance the understanding of the public, in
particular of disadvantaged communities as to how to exercise the rights
contemplated under this Act; |
| |
|
(b) |
encourage public authorities
to participate in the development and organisation of programmes
referred to in clause (a) and to undertake such programmes themselves; |
| |
|
(c) |
promote timely and effective
dissemination of accurate information by public authorities about their
activities; and |
| |
|
(d) |
train
Central Public Information Officers or State Public Information
Officers, as the case may be, of public authorities and produce relevant
training materials for use by the public authorities themselves. |
| |
(2) |
|
The
appropriate Government shall, within eighteen months from the
commencement of this Act, compile in its official language a guide
containing such information, in an easily comprehensible form and
manner, as may reasonably be required by a person who wishes to exercise
any right specified in this Act. |
| |
(3) |
|
The
appropriate Government shall, if necessary, update and publish the
guidelines referred to in sub-section (2) at regular intervals which
shall, in particular and without prejudice to the generality of
sub-section (2), include— |
| |
|
(a) |
the
objects of this Act; |
| |
|
(b) |
the
postal and street address, the phone and fax number and, if available,
electronic mail address of the Central Public Information Officer or
State Public Information Officer, as the case may be, of every public
authority appointed under sub-section (1) of section 5; |
| |
|
(c) |
the manner and the form in
which request for access to an information shall be made to a Central
Public Information Officer or State Public Information Officer, as the
case may be; |
| |
|
(d) |
the assistance available
from and the duties of the Central Public Information Officer or State
Public Information Officer, as the case may be, of a public authority
under this Act; |
| |
|
(e) |
the assistance available
from the Central Information Commission or State Information Commission,
as the case may be; |
| |
|
(f) |
all remedies in law
available regarding an act or failure to act in respect of a right or
duty conferred or imposed by this Act including the manner of filing an
appeal to the Commission; |
| |
|
(g) |
the provisions providing for
the voluntary disclosure of categories of records in accordance with
section 4; |
| |
|
(h) |
the notices regarding fees
to be paid in relation to requests for access to an information; and |
| |
|
(i) |
any additional regulations
or circulars made or issued in relation to obtaining access to an
information in accordance with this Act. |
| |
(4) |
|
The appropriate Government
must, if necessary, update and publish the guidelines at regular
intervals. |
|
27 |
(1) |
|
The appropriate Government
may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules to carry out
the provisions of this Act. |
| |
(2) |
|
In particular, and without
prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such rules may
provide for all or any of the following matters, namely:— |
| |
|
(a) |
the cost of the medium or
print cost price of the materials to be disseminated under sub-section
(4) of section 4; |
| |
|
(b) |
the fee payable under
sub-section (1) of section 6; |
| |
|
(c) |
the fee payable under
sub-sections (1) and (5) of section 7; |
| |
|
(d) |
the salaries and allowances
payable to and the terms and conditions of service of the officers and
other employees under sub-section (6) of section 13 and sub-section (6)
of section 16; |
| |
|
(e) |
the procedure to be adopted
by the Central Information Commission or State Information Commission,
as the case may be, in deciding the appeals under sub-section (10) of
section 19; and |
| |
|
(f) |
any other matter which is
required to be, or may be, prescribed. |
|
28 |
(1) |
|
The competent authority may,
by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules to carry out the
provisions of this Act. |
| |
(2) |
|
In particular, and without
prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such rules may
provide for all or any of the following matters, namely:— |
| |
|
(i) |
the cost of the medium or
print cost price of the materials to be disseminated under sub-section
(4) of section 4; |
| |
|
(ii) |
the fee payable under
sub-section (1) of section 6; |
| |
|
(iii) |
the fee payable under
sub-section (1) of section 7; and |
| |
|
(iv) |
any other matter which is
required to be, or may be, prescribed. |
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29 |
(1) |
|
Every rule made by the
Central Government under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after
it is made, before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for
a total period of thirty days which may be comprised in one session or
in two or more successive sessions, and if, before the expiry of the
session immediately following the session or the successive sessions
aforesaid, both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or
both Houses agree that the rule should not be made, the rule shall
thereafter have effect only in such modified form or be of no effect, as
the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment
shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done
under that rule. |
| |
(2) |
|
Every rule made under this
Act by a State Government shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is
notified, before the State Legislature. |
|
30 |
(1) |
|
If any difficulty arises in
giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the Central Government may,
by order published in the Official Gazette, make such provisions not
inconsistent with the provisions of this Act as appear to it to be
necessary or expedient for removal of the difficulty: |
| |
|
|
Provided that no such order
shall be made after the expiry of a period of two years from the date of
the commencement of this Act. |
| |
(2) |
|
Every order made under this
section shall, as soon as may be after it is made, be laid before each
House of Parliament. |
|
31 |
|
|
The Freedom of Information
Act, 2002 is hereby repealed. |
Food
Corporation of India, All rights reserved