To receive and inquire into a complaint
(i) from any person,-
(a) who has been unable to
submit a request to a Central Public Information Officer or State Public
Information Officer, as the case may be, either by reason that no such
officer has been appointed under this Act, or because the Central
Assistant Public Information Officer or State Assistant Public Information
Officer, as the case may be, has refused to accept his or her
application for information or appeal under this Act for forwarding
the same to the Central Public Information Officer or State Public Information
Officer or senior officer specified in sub- section (1) of section 19 or the
Central Information Commission or the State Information Commission, as the case
may be;
(b) who has been refused
access to any information requested under this Act;
(c) who has not been given a
response to a request for information or access to information within the time
limit specified under this Act;
(d) who has been required to
pay an amount of fee which he or she considers unreasonable;
(e) who
believes that he or she has been given incomplete, misleading or false
information under this Act; and
(f) in
respect of any other matter relating to requesting or obtaining access to
records under this Act.
(ii) Where the Central Information
Commission or the State Information Commission, is satisfied that there are
reasonable grounds to inquire into the matter, it may initiate an inquiry in
respect thereof.
The Central Information Commission or
State Information Commission, as the case may be, shall, while inquiring into
any matter under this section, have the same powers as are vested in a civil
court while trying a suit under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908 ),
in respect of the following matters, namely:-
(i) summoning
and enforcing the attendance of persons and compel them to give oral or written
evidence on oath and to produce the documents or things;
(ii) requiring
the discovery and inspection of documents;
(iii) receiving
evidence on affidavit;
(iv) requisitioning
any public record or copies thereof from any court or office;
(v) issuing
summons for examination of witnesses or documents; and
(vi) any
other matter which may be prescribed.
Central Information Commission or the
State Information Commission may during the inquiry of any complaint under the
Act, examine any record to which the Act applies which is under the control of
the public authority, and no such record may be withheld from it on any
grounds.