Political party RTI — CIC 2013 Full Bench; Election Commission

RTI Act §2(h) “public authority”; CIC Full Bench Order 2013; SC: ADR cases, Electoral Bonds judgment 2024; ECI handbook + party finance norms.

• CIC 2013 Full Bench: 6 national parties are “public authorities” per §2(h).
• Parties have largely not complied — file RTI applications go unanswered.
• Election Commission as PIO for party-registration data is fully under RTI.
• Party finances (donations, expenses) — accountability framework strong.
• Electoral Bonds (2018-2024): SC struck down on transparency grounds.
• 2024 Electoral Bonds judgment data publicly disclosed by ECI.
• Internal party operations (manifesto drafting, candidate selection) generally exempt.

1. Identify the request category — Party financial / candidate selection / ECI registration / electoral bonds?
2. Apply CIC 2013 Full Bench framework — For 6 national parties: subject to RTI as PA.
3. Apply ECI as PIO for registration data — Most party-related data accessible via ECI.
4. For electoral bonds, apply SC 2024 — Public disclosure mandatory; data already published.
5. Apply §10 severability — Operational decisions exempt; financial transparency disclosable.
6. Issue speaking order — Cite CIC 2013 + relevant SC rulings.

To: [Applicant Name]

Subject: Reply to RTI [____] — Political party / electoral records

Sir/Madam,

Your application sought records related to [specific party / electoral matter]. The framework applied:

POLITICAL PARTY AS PUBLIC AUTHORITY:
Per CIC Full Bench Order 2013, 6 national parties (BJP, Congress, BSP, NCP, CPI, CPI-M) are "public authorities" under §2(h). [If applicable to this office]: This office is subject to RTI; specific records sought are addressed below.

ECI-HELD DATA:
The Election Commission, as the regulator, holds:
- Party registration data: disclosed.
- Annual contribution disclosures (Form 24A): disclosed (publicly available).
- Election expenditure returns: disclosed.
- Contribution lists from political parties: disclosed.

ELECTORAL BONDS DATA (post-2024 SC judgment):
Per Supreme Court judgment on Electoral Bonds (struck down February 2024), historical bond data is publicly disclosed via SBI + ECI websites. This data is fully accessible.

PARTY INTERNAL OPERATIONS:
Internal manifesto drafting, candidate-selection deliberations, organizational matters: case-specific exemption under §8(1)(i) [deliberative process]. Specific portions disclosed where post-decision public-interest applies.

FINANCIAL TRANSPARENCY (ANNUAL REPORTS):
Annual party reports + Audit + Income Tax returns: disclosed per public-interest accountability.

DPDP §44(3) IMPACT (donor data):
For individual donor data, balance under §8(1)(j) + DPDP §44(3) — large donors (>Rs 25,000): disclosed per ECI norms. Smaller individual donations: case-specific.

Section 10 severability throughout.

Yours faithfully,
[Name, Designation, PIO]

Disclosed via ECI; party itself subject to RTI per CIC 2013.

Publicly disclosed per SC 2024 judgment.

Internal deliberation: exempt §8(1)(i). Post-decision: case-specific.

Filed with ECI; disclosed.

Aggregate disclosed; specific identifying data case-specific per §8(1)(j).

Pre-decision: exempt §8(1)(i). Post-publication: case-specific.

• CIC Full Bench Order 2013 — 6 national parties = public authorities per §2(h).
• Subhash Chandra Agarwal v CPIO (SC 2019) — Accountability framework extended to political institutions.
• Electoral Bonds judgment (SC Feb 2024) — Donor-anonymity scheme struck down on transparency grounds.
• ADR v UoI series (1999-2024) — Election Commission disclosure framework.
• CIC, Re: Various party RTIs (2013-2024) — Pattern of party non-compliance + ICs ordering disclosure.

• Refusing all party RTIs — violates CIC 2013 Full Bench.
• Treating party finances as commercially confidential — wrong; accountability dominates.
• Withholding ECI-held data — accessible via ECI directly.
• Refusing electoral bonds data — already publicly disclosed post-2024 SC ruling.
• Failing to recognize 2024 SC Electoral Bonds judgment changed framework.
• Generic refusal without §10 severability application.

• Maintain list of 6 national parties + their PIO contacts.
• For party-related queries, parallel-file with ECI for fastest result.
• Train party PIOs on CIC 2013 Full Bench compliance.
• For electoral bonds queries, redirect to public SBI/ECI data.
• For donor data, prepare anonymized aggregate templates.
• For internal-deliberation queries, document decision-status carefully for §8(1)(i) application.

CIC 2013 covers 6 national parties. State parties: separate question; some state ICs have ruled similarly.

Disclosed via ECI under §29A. Public record.

Pre-decision: exempt §8(1)(i). Post-announcement: case-specific.

Public statements: yes. Internal deliberation: exempt.

Publicly disclosed; ECI + SBI websites have all historical data.

• pio faa knowledge base
• pio supreme court rulings
• pio section 8 1 i cabinet papers
• act/section-2
• rti for political parties

RTI Act §2(h); CIC Full Bench Order 2013; SC Electoral Bonds judgment Feb 2024; ECI handbook on party finance; ADR case series.

Last reviewed: 25 April 2026.