Bank Not Resolving Your Complaint? Use RTI to Get the Action Taken on Record

When RTI applies to a bank complaint

This is the key distinction:

• Public-sector (government) banks — SBI, PNB, Bank of Baroda, Canara, etc. — are public authorities, so you can file an RTI directly to the bank’s CPIO.
• Private banks (HDFC, ICICI, Axis, etc.) are not directly under the RTI Act. But the Reserve Bank of India is, so you can seek information the RBI holds — including the status of a complaint you escalated to the RBI Banking Ombudsman (RB-IOS scheme).

How an RTI helps

Complaints stall when a bank closes them on paper without resolving them, or the Ombudsman office takes months. An RTI forces the action-taken report onto the record — what was done, by whom, and why your grievance is still open. That record is also valuable if you later approach a consumer forum.

Who to send the RTI to

• Public-sector bank: the CPIO at the bank’s head office or the controlling regional office.
• RBI Ombudsman complaint: the CPIO, Reserve Bank of India (Consumer Education and Protection Department).

What to ask in your RTI

1. The action taken on my complaint no. ________ dated ________ regarding ________ (issue), with the dates of each step.
2. The name and designation of the officer who handled / closed the complaint.
3. If the complaint was closed, the grounds on which it was treated as resolved.
4. The current status of my Banking Ombudsman complaint, reference no. ________ (if escalated to RBI).
5. The bank’s internal guidelines / turnaround time for this category of complaint.

Need a format? Adapt one from our Sample RTI Applications, or have us draft it for the correct authority.

If you get no reply in 30 days

No reply is a deemed refusal — file a First Appeal. For a central body like RBI, the Second Appeal goes to the Central Information Commission.

Not sure if your bank is covered, or want it filed correctly? FileMyRTI drafts and files the RTI for you from ₹399.