RTI response authority is limited: Central Assistant Public Information Officer may receive and forward applications, not decide merits.

The Central Assistant Public Information Officer's role under the Right to Information Act, 2005 is limited to receiving RTI applications or appeals and forwarding them promptly to the competent officer or authority. The obligation to furnish information or refuse the request rests with the Central Public Information Officer, who must act on the merits under the statutory scheme. A Central Assistant Public Information Officer is therefore not authorised to issue a substantive reply on the merits of an RTI request.

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Issues: Whether the Central Assistant Public Information Officer is authorised to respond to an application made under the Right to Information Act, 2005.

Analysis: Section 5(2) of the Right to Information Act, 2005 confines the role of a Central Assistant Public Information Officer to receiving RTI applications or appeals and forwarding them forthwith to the competent officer or authority. The obligation to furnish information or reject the request lies with the Central Public Information Officer under Section 7(1). The statutory scheme does not empower the Central Assistant Public Information Officer to issue a substantive reply on the merits of the request.

Conclusion: The Central Assistant Public Information Officer is not authorised to respond to the RTI application on merits. The issue was answered in favour of the appellant.

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