Maharashtra SIC Second Appeal: Form A, Fee, Benches

A second appeal is your last administrative remedy under the Right to Information Act, 2005. Once the First Appellate Authority (FAA) has decided your first appeal, or let the 30 to 45 day window lapse without a word, Section 19(3) lets you carry the matter to the Maharashtra State Information Commission (SIC). The Commission can order disclosure, impose a penalty on the Public Information Officer, and award you compensation. This guide walks through the 90-day window, Form A, the fee, which bench hears your matter, and how to track the hearing.

Under Section 19(3) of the RTI Act, a second appeal lies before the State Information Commission within 90 days from the date the First Appellate Authority's decision was made or should have been made, or from when you actually received it. You become eligible the moment the FAA decides your first appeal against you, or simply fails to decide it within the time fixed by the Act.

Missed the 90 days? Section 19(3) carries a proviso: the Commission “may admit the appeal after the expiry of the period of ninety days if it is satisfied that the appellant was prevented by sufficient cause from filing the appeal in time.” Condonation is discretionary, not automatic. If you are late, attach a short, dated application for condonation of delay explaining the genuine reason (hospitalisation, postal delay, wrong address by the department). A bare second appeal filed late, with no condonation request, is liable to be dismissed as time-barred.

The Maharashtra SIC runs a dedicated online second-appeal portal. As the official guidelines state, “This web portal can be used by Indian citizens to file online second appeal applications under the Right to Information Act-2005, and the payment of prescribed fees can also be made online on the portal.”

1. Open the portal. Go to sic.maharashtra.gov.in/siconline/ and choose “Online Second Appeal”. Only Indian citizens may file.
2. Fill Form A. Enter your details, the PIO and First Appellate Authority details, dates of your RTI application, the PIO reply (or silence), and your first appeal and its outcome. Fields marked with a star are mandatory; give a working mobile number and e-mail for SMS and e-mail alerts.
3. State your grounds. The online text column is limited to 150 words. If your grounds are longer, write them on a separate sheet and upload it as an attachment.
4. Attach the annexures. Upload the documents listed in the next section.
5. Pay the fee. The fee is Rs 20 as prescribed in the Maharashtra RTI Rules, 2012. Pay by internet banking, ATM or debit card, or credit card (Master/Visa). BPL applicants pay nothing but must attach a copy of the certificate issued by the appropriate government authority.
6. Save your registration number. After payment, “a unique registration number would be generated which will be sent to the appellant by SMS and e-mail.” Keep it; you will use it to track the cause list and hearing notices.

Prefer post? You may also send Form A with the Rs 20 fee (by court-fee stamp or as your bench office directs) and the same annexures to the relevant SIC bench by registered post or in person. Keep the postal receipt.

• Copy of your original RTI application under Section 6(1) and the postal or online receipt
• The PIO's reply, if any (or proof that the 30 day deadline lapsed)
• Copy of your first appeal and proof of filing it with the First Appellate Authority
• The FAA's order, if one was passed
• A brief, numbered statement of your grounds of appeal
• Application for condonation of delay, if you are past 90 days
• BPL certificate, if you are claiming fee exemption

Send an advance copy of the complete appeal to the PIO and the First Appellate Authority as well, so they can file their say. This avoids an adjournment on the first date.

The Maharashtra SIC is not a single Mumbai office. It is headed by the State Chief Information Commissioner at Mantralaya, Mumbai, with separate benches that broadly track the state's revenue divisions. Per the Commission's official contact page, the benches are:

• Greater Mumbai: New Administrative Building, Mantralaya, Mumbai
• Konkan: Konkan Bhavan, CBD Belapur, Navi Mumbai
• Pune: New Administration Building, opposite Council Hall, Pune
• Nashik: near Trambak Naka, Nashik
• Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar (formerly Aurangabad) - Small Saving Building, behind the Treasury Office
• Amravati: Bhatkuli Tahsil Office, Camp, Amravati
• Nagpur: Administrative Building No. 2, Civil Lines, Nagpur

As a rule of thumb, your appeal goes to the bench for the revenue division in which the public authority sits: a Pune-district department to Pune, a Nagpur-district department to Nagpur, a Mumbai or coastal-district body to Greater Mumbai or Konkan. If you file online, the Greater Mumbai system routes your appeal electronically to the concerned Nodal Officer and Assistant Section Officer, so you do not have to guess the internal posting. If you are unsure which bench covers your district, the office staff at any bench, or the helpdesk number on the SIC site, will point you to the correct one before you post a paper appeal.

Once registered, your appeal joins the queue at its bench. Watch for:

• Cause list: the bench publishes a list of matters fixed for hearing on each date. Track yours using the registration number from your SMS.
• Hearing notice: you will be informed of the date by post, SMS or e-mail. The PIO and FAA are also noticed.
• The hearing itself: appearances are often allowed by video conference or, in simple matters, decided on the papers. Carry your file: the RTI application, replies, first appeal, FAA order and your grounds. Be ready to explain in one or two sentences exactly what information is still missing and why the exemption claimed (if any) does not apply.

Hearings can take months to be listed, because the benches carry heavy pendency. A polite written reminder quoting your registration number, sent after a reasonable wait, does no harm.

The Commission is not a toothless forum. If it finds the Public Information Officer withheld information without reasonable cause, Section 20(1) lets it impose “a penalty of two hundred and fifty rupees each day till application is received or information is furnished,” subject to a ceiling of Rs 25,000, recovered from the PIO's own salary. It can also recommend disciplinary action.

Separately, under Section 19(8)(b), the Commission can require the public authority to compensate you for any loss or detriment you suffered because of the wrongful denial. There is no statutory cap on compensation; it depends on the loss you can prove. So in your appeal, do not just ask for the documents, ask the Commission to act on Section 20 against the PIO and to award compensation under Section 19(8)(b).

• Filing after 90 days with no condonation request: Section 19(3) makes the appeal time-barred unless you show sufficient cause.
• Skipping the first appeal: a second appeal under Section 19(3) presupposes a Section 19(1) first appeal; you cannot leapfrog straight to the SIC.
• Not sending an advance copy to the PIO and FAA, which invites an adjournment.
• Wrong bench by post: confirm the revenue-division bench before posting, or simply file online and let the system route it.
• Vague grounds: state precisely what was withheld and which exemption claim you dispute.

Online is faster, gives you an instant registration number, and the Greater Mumbai system routes your appeal to the correct bench automatically. Post is fine if you cannot pay online; send Form A, the Rs 20 fee and all annexures by registered post and keep the receipt.

The second-appeal fee is Rs 20, as prescribed in the Maharashtra RTI Rules, 2012. Applicants below the poverty line pay nothing but must attach a BPL certificate issued by the appropriate government authority.

The RTI Act gives the right to information to citizens of India. The Maharashtra portal expressly states it is for Indian citizens. An Indian citizen residing abroad can file, but a foreign national cannot.

There is no fixed timeline. The benches carry heavy pendency, so listing can take several months. Track the cause list with your registration number and send a reminder if there is a long silence.

If the public authority defies a clear SIC order, your remedy is a writ petition under Article 226 before the High Court, asking it to enforce the order. See our guide on the writ petition after a CIC or SIC order.

Yes. Under Section 20 it can penalise the PIO up to Rs 25,000 (Rs 250 a day), recovered from salary, and under Section 19(8)(b) it can order the public authority to compensate you for proven loss.

Often not. Many benches allow appearance by video conference, and straightforward matters are decided on the papers. Keep your full file ready in case the bench asks questions.

• File or check your appeal at sic.maharashtra.gov.in/siconline/.
• New to the Maharashtra RTI route? Start with how to file an RTI in Maharashtra.
• Compare the process at the national level with how to file a second appeal at the CIC.
• If the order is defied, escalate via a writ petition under Article 226.
• For the full playbook, read The RTI Playbook.

Sources: Maharashtra State Information Commission online second-appeal guidelines (sic.maharashtra.gov.in/siconline) and contact page; Central Information Commission second-appeal guidelines and penalties pages; RTI Act, 2005, Sections 19 and 20. Verify current bench addresses and fees on the official SIC site before filing.