An appeal in legal parlance means the removal of cause from an inferior subordinate to a superior tribunal or forum in order to test and scrutinize the correctness of the impugned decision.
Section 19 of the Right to Information Act provides for procedure of appeal. The first appeal lies to an officer holding a superior rank to that of Central Public Information Officer or State Public Information Officer as the case may be, within 30 days from the receipt of the impugned order. The second appeal lies to Central Information Commission or State Information Commission as the case may be. The appeal time is 90 days from the date of receipt of the order from the first appellate authority.
First Appeal-
Section 19(1), Any person who, does not receive a decision within the time specified in sub-section (1) or clause (a) of sub section (3) of Section 7, or is aggrieved by a decision of the Central Public Information Officer or State Public Information Officer, as the case may be, may, within 30 days from the expiry of such period or from the receipt of such a decision prefer an appeal to such officer who is senior in rank to the Central Public Information Officer or the State Public Information Officer, as the case may be, in each public authority:
Provided that such officer may admit the appeal after the expiry of the period of thirty days if he or she is satisfied that the appellant was prevented by sufficient cause from filing the appeal in time.
Section 19(2), where an appeal is preferred against an order made by a Central Public Information Officer or a State Public Information Officer, as the case may be, under Section 11 to disclose third party information, the appeal by the concerned third party shall be made within thirty days from the date of the order.
Second Appeal-
Second appeal under RTI is the highest appeal under RTI Act,2005. Section 19(3) of the RTI Act provides to citizen right to Second Appeal before Central Information Commission or State Information Commission, as the case may be, against the order on First Appeal. Anybody who is dissatisfied with the decision of the First Appellate Authority can file Second Appeal to the Information Commission at the Centre or respective States. For issues related to Central Government public authorities, you need to send your appeal to the Central Information Commission and for the matters related to State Government public authorities, send your appeal to concerned State Information Commission.
Section 19(3) of the Right to Information Act, 2005 provides that a second appeal against the decision under sub-section (1) shall lie within 90 days from the date on which the decision should have been made or was actually received, with the Central Information Commission or the State Information Commission:
Provided that the Central Information Commission or the State Information Commission, as the case may be, 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 for filing the appeal in time.