DNA:
Mumbai: Monday, 29 September 2014.
After
debating for over one-and-a-half hour, 10-odd right to information (RTI)
activists took up issues discussed with information commissioners. "I
think we should keep non-compliance of the state information commission's (SIC)
order at the top of the list. It is a crucial matter and needs to be taken up
on a priority basis," said Shailesh Gandhi, former central information
commissioner.
On August 16
and September 20, a group of RTI activists gathered at Shailesh Gandhi's home
for what is called, the RTI Samvad. A recent phenomenon, this group meets to
discuss everything and anything concerning the RTI Act.
"The
idea was to start a dialogue and to understand various aspects of the law. We
felt that instead of one RTI activist taking one position and another a
different one, we should have a dialogue about it first. Many times there are
debates but no dialogues. It does not mean that we agree with it. There can be
differing views. The idea is to discuss and keep an open mind and learn to take
things forward," said Gandhi.
The idea was
nurtured with the desire to understand the RTI Act and those laws that aid it.
"No one really knows the law (enough). We hear various views and have a
dialogue on them. It is done with a hope that maybe we will come to a common
understanding of the law. There are times when there is a difference between
what law says and what people think it should be. But, what the law actually
means and the reasons why it does so is hardly discussed. The idea is to
understand this," added Gandhi.
During
discussion of these laws, new impediments that are being created in the
implementation of the law are also brought into focus. One of these, as pointed
out by RTI activist Mahendra Dharod in the meeting, was public information
officers asking the applicants to come and inspect documents.
"Even
when inspection is not sought, recently this is one of the most common means
through which information is been denied to an applicant. They do not even keep
the index ready," said Dharod. On the above issue, the activists gathered
agreed and decided to oppose it by taking it up with the commissioners.
While
educating activists is one thing, thought is also given on how to work out a
problem by addressing it in a different way. How to improve the quality of
answers given by the public information officers is one such issue.
"We are
thinking of awarding PIOs with best practices so that they stand out among the
rest. Conducting seminars for them could also be helpful," said Narayan
Varma, another activist who was present at the meet.
"It is a
far-fetched thought, but may be one day we will invites officials to join us
too. It will just help us see their point of view. It will also create more
opinions and understanding of the law through proper discussion," said
Gandhi.