EPW: New Delhi: Friday, July 13, 2018.
The right to
information, much like the right to vote, is rooted in the same fundamental
right, with the offices of the chief information commissioner and the chief
election commissioner, respectively, operating at the same level of autonomy,
towards the enforcement of these rights. The proposed amendments to the Right
to Information Act, which reportedly seek to downgrade the status of the chief
information commissioner and information commissioners, reduce the autonomy of
this constitutional institution and are, consequently, an assault on the right
to information and democracy.