Youth Ki Awaaz: New Delhi: Friday, July 07, 2017.
The Right To
Information Act, passed in 2005, is one of the most powerful tools in the hands
of the public. Not only does it help keep corruption in check, it also provides
those within civil society with a way to hold the government accountable. Its
foremost importance is in providing transparency among government institutions.
After all, can you really be an informed citizen and freely voice your opinions
if information is withheld?
Over the last
few years, the RTI Act has been used several times to hold those in power accountable.
For instance, in 2007, Assam-based organisation, the Krishak Mukti Sangram
Samiti filed RTI applications to bring to light how food meant to be
distributed to people living below the poverty line was not really reaching
them. It led to the firing of several government officials
Again, in
2008, RTI activists filed applications to bring to light the ‘Adarsh Society
Scam‘. A 31-storey building meant for housing war veterans and war widows had
somehow gone into the hands of politicians and their relatives. The fiasco led
to the resignation of the then-chief minister of Maharashtra, Ashok Chavan.
The RTI Act
has ensured on several occasions that justice was within the reach of ordinary
people. However, if you value the RTI Act, you should be very wary of the new
set of rules proposed by the government to process RTI cases.
In this
video, RTI activists Anjali Bhardwaj and Venkatesh Nayak explain how the new
rules attack and dilute the RTI Act and what you can do to safeguard your right
to information.