The Hindu: New Delhi: Tuesday, July 17, 2018.
Any move to
amend the RTI Act must involve public consultation
he Bharatiya
Janata Party (BJP)government has struck another blow against transparency and
accountability. Its already negative track record that has been marked by an
unwillingness to operationalise the Lok Pal, the Whistleblowers Act and the
Grievance Redress law has taken another step backwards if one is to go by a
single line in item 14 in the legislative agenda of the monsoon session of
Parliament (from July 18). It says: “To amend The Right to Information (RTI)
Act 2005 for Introduction, Consideration, and Passing.” The government will
most likely proclaim these proposed amendments to be “progressive” as it did
with its inverted definition of bringing about “transparency” in political
party funding through “secret” electoral bonds. For such a dispensation, the
RTI is an obvious threat.
Since 2005,
the RTI Act has helped transform the relationship between the citizen and
government, dismantle illegitimate concentrations of power, legitimise the
demand for answers, and assist people in changing centuries of feudal and
colonial relationships. But public servants, troubled by accountability, have
seen this as interference. As a result, the RTI Act has been under constant
threat of amendments. At least two major attempts to amend the Act have been
met with such strong popular resistance that the government of the day has had
to back off. This time, it seems as if the government has decided to avoid all
norms of transparency and consultation in trying to impose its undemocratic
will.
It is a bitter
irony that a little over a decade after the RTI Act was operationalised,
proposed amendments have been kept secret; there has not even been a hint of
public consultation.
Undermining
consultation
It is no
secret that the intent of this government is questionable. Applications for
information about amendments made under the RTI Act have been stonewalled and
information denied. Any amendment to the law should have been discussed before
it went to the cabinet, as in the “pre legislative consultation policy” of the
government of India (https://bit.ly/2NVl4Gi).
But more
danger lies ahead. Bureaucratic jargon such as “consideration” is a euphemism
for pushing the amendment through without due consideration of parliamentary
processes. For some time now, major pieces of legislation, including those that
affect the transparency regime, are being pushed through without being sent to
multi-party standing committees. Worse still, in order to avoid facing the strength
of the Opposition, there have been steps to steamroller legislative measures
(in the garb of money Bills) that have destabilised access to information such
as Aadhaar and electoral bonds.
Blow to
transparency
The spirit of
the RTI law lies in not just the filing of an RTI application and getting an
answer. It actually mandates the replacement of a prevailing culture of secrecy
with a culture of transparency. Under Section 4(2) of the RTI Act, which has
been poorly implemented, it says: “It shall be a constant endeavour of every
public authority... to provide as much information suomotu to the public at
regular intervals... so that the public have minimum resort to the use of this
Act to obtain information.” One can understand why there is an attempt to
undermine the RTI Act in letter and spirit.
Hampering
acccountability
The popular
movement for accountability which swept across the country five years ago has
also been successfully neutralised at least for now. While the RTI Act allowed
us to uncover fraud, it was difficult to ensure that the information could be
used to hold a bureaucrat or elected representative accountable. The Lokpal
debate, for example, highlighted grand corruption, but those who protested
across India were personally fed up with the inefficiency of public servants
and their impunity. Accountability to the people should have been
institutionalised through a strong social accountability and Grievance Redress
Act, as promised by the BJP. That promise has been forgotten. The Lokpal Act is
now in cold storage. No Lokpal appointments have been made, despite repeated
prodding by the Supreme Court; in fact the government has tried to protect
bureaucrats by amending the Lokpal Act in such a way that assets of family
members of public servants do not have to be disclosed in the public domain.
Citizens’
movements in India have been energetic and courageous. The use of the RTI has
led to more than 70 citizens fighting corruption losing their lives, but the
government remains unaffected. People have been demanding a strong
whistle-blower protection law, but like the Lokpal, the Whistle Blowers
Protection Act has been ignored, with attempts to amend the law that will
completely negate its intent.
It is notable
that amendments to the RTI rules that were put up for public feedback have
reportedly been withdrawn after objections. It is without justification that a
government which could place its rules for public consultation should now shy
away from placing amendments in the public domain. Though there have been reports
that the proposed amendments seek to change the status of the information
commissions, it is not worth discussing these in an opaque framework.
Secret
amendments to a law fashioned and used extensively are deeply suspect. This
time round, it is far more critical that all of us rally together again for the
people of India cannot afford to lose what has been gained through the RTI.
Nikhil Dey
and Aruna Roy are founder members of the Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan and
National Campaign for People’s Right to Information
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