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—act:section-7 [2026/06/03 17:01] (current) – created - external edit 127.0.0.1
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 +{{htmlmetatags>metatag-keywords=(section 7 rti act, rti 30 day reply, rti deemed refusal, 48 hour rti life liberty, rti section 7 6 free, rti section 7 9)
 +metatag-description=(Section 7 of the RTI Act for citizens — the 30-day deadline, 48-hour life-and-liberty rule, free disclosure after delay, and how to defeat the "voluminous" excuse.)}}
 +
 +{{page>snippets:dpdp-banner}}
 +
 +====== Section 7 of the RTI Act — the 30-day clock that protects your application ======
 +
 +{{ :social:auto:act-section-7.png?direct&1200 |Section 7 of the RTI Act — Disposal of request}}
 +
 +<WRAP center round info 95%>
 +**In one line:** Section 7 forces every Public Information Officer to either supply the information or refuse it in writing **within 30 days**. If the request concerns the life or liberty of a person, the deadline drops to **48 hours**. Miss the deadline, and the information must be supplied **free of charge** — that is the law's built-in penalty for delay.
 +</WRAP>
 +
 +The 30-day clock is the single most powerful protection in the RTI Act. It does not depend on the goodwill of the officer; it runs automatically from the day the application is received. Every other right in the Act — appeal, penalty, compensation — flows from this deadline. Understanding it is the difference between a productive RTI and an open-ended file in a drawer.
 +
 +===== In plain English =====
 +
 +Section 7(1) says the PIO must dispose of your request within 30 days — either by supplying the information or by rejecting it with reasons. There is a separate 48-hour rule for information that concerns the **life or liberty** of a person — for example, a missing person, an unrecorded FIR, a patient's own medical records from a government hospital, an undertrial seeking their own case papers. If the request involves a third party, the timeline stretches to 40 days under Section 11.
 +
 +Section 7(3) says the PIO must inform you of any further fee (printing, CD, postage) before charging it. Section 7(5) waives the application fee for **BPL applicants**. Section 7(6) is the citizen's strongest tool: if the PIO blows the 30-day deadline, the information must be supplied **without further fee**. Section 7(8) says every rejection must be a "speaking order" — citing the exact sub-clause relied on, applying it to the facts, and telling you the appeal route. Section 7(9) allows the PIO to change the **form** of disclosure (offer inspection instead of photocopies, for example) but does not permit outright refusal.
 +
 +===== Short snippet from the Act =====
 +
 +> "Where information sought for concerns the life or liberty of a person, the same shall be provided within forty-eight hours of the receipt of the request." — Proviso to Section 7(1), RTI Act, 2005 ((Full text on [[https://www.indiacode.nic.in/handle/123456789/1362|India Code — RTI Act, 2005]].))
 +
 +===== What this means for you =====
 +
 +  - **Count from the day the office received your application**, not the day you posted it. Keep the registered post or e-filing acknowledgement.
 +  - **On day 31, you already have two free remedies.** First, the deemed refusal lets you file a first appeal even without a reply. Second, Section 7(6) makes the information itself free of further fee.
 +  - **Use the 48-hour rule honestly.** If the information genuinely concerns life or liberty (yours or someone else's), write that in the **subject line** — "URGENT, Section 7(1) proviso — life and liberty". Add a paragraph explaining why.
 +  - **A "voluminous" refusal is not legal.** Section 7(9) permits **change of form** only — the PIO can ask you to come and inspect — but cannot refuse altogether. Cite //CBSE v. Aditya Bandopadhyay// (2011) in your appeal.
 +  - **Every rejection must be a speaking order.** Under 7(8), it must name the exact sub-clause of Section 8 or 9, explain the application to the facts, and give the FAA's name and address.
 +
 +===== Common scenarios =====
 +
 +  * The PIO sends a reply on day 45 demanding Rs 200 for photocopies. The reply is late under 7(1), so the photocopies are **free** under 7(6). Reply citing 7(6) and ask for delivery without payment.
 +  * You are filing for your own hospital records during a medical emergency. Mark the application "URGENT — Section 7(1) proviso, life and liberty". The PIO must respond in 48 hours. A delay of even one day is appealable.
 +
 +===== What to do if the PIO blows the deadline =====
 +
 +  - **Day 31:** treat it as a deemed refusal and file a first appeal under [[:act:section-19|Section 19(1)]]. Use the [[:appeal-templates:deemed-refusal-first-appeal|deemed-refusal first appeal template]].
 +  - **Quote Section 7(6) in the appeal:** even if the FAA later directs disclosure, the information must be supplied free.
 +  - **If the PIO cited Section 7(9) to refuse:** see our [[https://righttoinformation.wiki/appeal-templates/wrongful-section-8-rejection|wrongful refusal appeal template]] and replace the citation with 7(9).
 +  - **If the delay is part of a pattern of mala fide conduct:** pray for a Section 20 penalty in the second appeal — see [[:act:section-20|Section 20]].
 +
 +===== Related sections and tools =====
 +
 +  * [[:act:start|Back to the Act index]]
 +  * [[:act:section-6|Section 6 — How to file]]
 +  * [[:act:section-8|Section 8 — Exemptions]]
 +  * [[:act:section-11|Section 11 — Third-party 40-day timeline]]
 +  * [[:act:section-19|Section 19 — Appeals]]
 +  * [[:act:section-20|Section 20 — Penalties]]
 +  * [[https://righttoinformation.wiki/tools/pio-reply-checker|PIO Reply Checker — test if the reply is a valid speaking order]]
 +  * [[https://righttoinformation.wiki/tools/first-appeal-app.html|First Appeal Builder]]
 +  * [[:rti-fees-by-state|RTI fees by State]]
 +
 +===== FAQ =====
 +
 +==== What if the PIO replies on day 30 but the reply is incomplete? ====
 +
 +The 30-day rule under 7(1) requires **disposal** — that is, a complete and reasoned reply. An incomplete reply does not stop the clock; it is treated as a partial refusal and is appealable under Section 19(1) on day 31.
 +
 +==== Does Section 7(6) free disclosure also waive the original Rs 10 fee? ====
 +
 +No. The Rs 10 application fee is the entry fee under Section 6 and is not refunded. What is waived under 7(6) is the **further fee** — photocopying, CD, postage — that the PIO would otherwise have charged for the information itself.
 +
 +==== Can the PIO use Section 7(9) to refuse a voluminous request outright? ====
 +
 +No. The Supreme Court in //CBSE v. Aditya Bandopadhyay// (2011) held that 7(9) allows only a change of **form** — typically, inspection in place of photocopies. Outright refusal under 7(9) is illegal and is a recognised ground for the first appeal.
 +
 +//Last reviewed on: 15 May 2026 — RTI Wiki editorial team.//
 +
 +{{tag>rti act section-7 30-days deadline 48-hour life-liberty deemed-refusal 2026}}