Indian Express: Hyderabad: Friday, August 24, 2018.
The proposed
amendment to the RTI Act would "destroy and smash" the independence
of the Central Information Commission and weaken the power of people to seek
information under it, Central Information Commissioner M Sridhar Acharyulu said
today.
He sought
total withdrawal of the proposed bill to amend the Right to Information Act,
saying there was no need for any change in any format.
The
government had said it was considering a proposal to amend the 2005 Act to
frame rules on salaries and services of Chief Information Commissioner (CIC)
and Information Commissioners (ICs).
A notice of
intention was given for introducing 'The Right to Information (Amendment) Bill,
2018' in the Rajya Sabha on July 18 this year but it did not happen.
"I am
not sure whether they have totally withdrawn...they did not introduce (the
Bill) in recent session of the Parliament and I am happy (for that).
I will be
further happy if they don't introduce it anymore," Acharyulu said.
"It
(proposed amendment Bill) should be totally withdrawn and it should not be
introduced...it will destroy and smash the independence of the CIC and and it
will definitely weaken the commission and also weaken the power of the citizens
to seek information," the information commissioner told PTI.
Acharyulu,
who has already flagged his concerns in a letter last month to his colleagues
in the commission, said he wants the government to "understand" and
not to make any amendment in any format.
There was no
need for any sort of amendment, he said adding, the institution and the act
should be protected.
He said
opposition parties should also give a commitment that they would not dilute the
RTI Act if they come to power.
In his
letter, he had said the proposed amendment bill attempts to dilute the
independence of Central and State Information Commissioners, and stressed the
need for its withdrawal.
He had stated
that the proposed bill intends to defeat the very purpose of the RTI Act,
besides being an affront to federalism enshrined as basic feature of Indian
Constitution.
Acharyulu had
requested the Chief Information Commissioner to send an official communication
to the government asking for withdrawal of the proposed bill.
Earlier
today, he launched 'YouRTI.in' website of city-based NGO, Yugantar, which
offers RTI services for the benefit of the general public.