'Don't emasculate the RTI Act dear Prime Minister'

Thursday, October 29, 2009 12:12:12 PM, ummid.com Staff Reporter

Malegaon: Opposition to the proposed amendments in the Right To Information (RTI) Act by the UPA Government in the centre ceases to cool down. Instead, the voice of dissent against any changes in the most publicized act formulated by the ruling alliance itself accumulating with every passing day.

The latest is a letter addressed to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh which is circulated on the internet for endorsement.

"We urge the government to abandon the ill advised move to amend the RTI Act", said the October 18 letter penned down by Aruna Roy, Shekhar Singh and Nikhil Dey.

"Despite categorical assurances by the Minister of State that any amendments, if at all necessary, would only be decided upon after consultations with the public, the Government is seemingly going ahead with the amendments. We are dismayed to read that far from strengthening the RTI Act, as stated by the Honourable President of India during her speech to the Parliament on 4th June 2009, the governments proposition would in fact emasculate the RTI Act", said the trio in their letter.

Coming down haeavily on the proposed amendments that include, introducing an exemption for vexatious and frivolous applications, and by excluding from the purview of the RTI Act access to "file notings" and the decision making process by excluding discussion/consultations that take place before arriving at a decision, the trio observed, "We strongly believe that it is impossible to come up with definitions of "vexatious" and "frivolous" that are not completely subjective and consequently prone to rampant misuse by officials. We also feel that it is a hollow promise to have legislation for ensuring "transparency" and encouraging "accountability" in governance which excludes the basis on which a decision is taken."

"Would it be fair to judge a decision (or the decision maker) without knowing why such a decision was taken, what facts and arguments were advanced in its favour, and what against? Can one hold a government (or an official) accountable, just on the basis of what they did (or did not do) without knowing the real reasons for their action or inaction? We, the people of India, already directly or indirectly know the decisions of the government, for we are the ones who bear the consequences. What the RTI Act facilitated was a right to know why those decisions were taken, by whom, and based on what advice?" they asked in the letter before adding, "This right is the bedrock of democracy and the right to information, and cannot be separated or extinguished without denying this fundamental right."

Quoting from the Nationwide surveys conducted recently they observe, "Two current nation-wide studies, one done under the aegis of the Government of India and the other by people's organizations (RaaG and NCPRI), have both concluded, that the main constraints faced by the government in providing information is inadequate implementation, lack of training of staff and poor record management. The survey also identified lack of awareness, along with harassment of the applicant, as two of the major constraints that prevent citizen from exercising their right to information."

Requesting the Prime Minster to initiate a public debate of the problems that it might be facing in the implementing of the RTI Act and take on board the findings of the two national studies that have recently been completed, they said, "We are confident that the involvement of the people of India will result in evolving solutions that do not threaten to destroy the RTI Act itself. For a government that has been repeatedly been appreciated for bringing about this progressive legislation, such a move would strengthen the spirit of transparency and public consultation. Surely that is the least that can be expected of a government that propagates the spirit of transparency."

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