Outlook: New Delhi: Thursday,
June 13, 2013.
Striking a
different note, senior RJD leader Raghuvansh Prasad Singh today welcomed the
CIC order that held political parties are answerable under the Right to
Information Act and slammed those opposing the "historical" order.
"It's a
matter of serious concern that all political parties have joined together and
giving absurd arguments to oppose the order," the RJD leader said.
He said the
Central Information Commission's historical order should be welcomed so that
the use of black money in elections comes to an end and there is inner
democracy within political parties.
"Being
on the side of the transparency is morally the right thing to do. It is
expected that political parties and their workers will reconsider their views
on it," Singh said in a press release.
Most of the
political parties, including Left, Congress, BJP and JD-U, have expressed their
disagreement over the CIC order.
"It
becomes a matter of serious concern all the more, when the ruling Congress also
recently opposed the recent order of the CIC. Left parties and BJP also
expressed their disagreement over the order by citing one or another
reason," the RJD leader rued.
In a landmark
ruling to ensure transparency in the functioning of political parties, the CIC
on June 3 held that the parties are public authorities and answerable to
citizens under RTI Act.
The
Commission, a quasi-judicial body, had said six national parties -- Congress,
BJP, NCP, CPI-M, CPI and BSP -- have been substantially funded indirectly by
the central government and they have the character of public authority under
the RTI Act as they perform public functions.
The RJD
leader said political parties get many privileges from the government like land
and buildings on discount rates and rebate in income tax.
Describing
the objections put up by political parties to the CIC order as
"absurd", Singh recalled that one party even said that political
parties are not retail shops to come under RTI.
"Are the
public institutions like Rajya Sabha, Lok Sabha, Supreme Court and High Courts
retail shops that they come under RTI? This is bad logic.
"Governments
are formed through parties and if transparency is not ensured in the
functioning of the parties, the purpose of RTI Act will remain
incomplete," he said.
Amid talks of
the government bringing some Constitutional amendment to exclude political
parties from the ambit of RTI, the senior RJD leader said such a move will
weaken the people's confidence in the political system.
"Hence,
we should be ready to prepare ourselves to be accountable and
transparent," Singh said, holding that corruption remains a major
challenge in the society because money and muscle power, casteism, communalism
and regionalism dominate elections.
"If
black money is used in elections, it will be difficult to check its growth in
the country," he said.
Recalling
that Mahatma Gandhi had recommended public accounting of the earning and
expenditure of a political party, he said, "Now political parties are just
completing the formality of furnishing income and expenditure to Election
Commission and Income Tax department.
"But
they are afraid to come under the ambit of RTI. This (stand) is exposing
them."
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