India | Updated Jul 02, 2012 at 08:56am IST
RTI Act under threat: outgoing Information Commissioner Shailesh Gandhi
Click to play videoNew Delhi: Outgoing Information Commissioner Shailesh Gandhi has warned that the Right to Information Act is under threat and might become irrelevant in the next five years.
Speaking to CNN-IBN, Gandhi said that the threats come from various sections. "The RTI Act is growing very well across the country, but there are serious threats to it," he said.
He said that the government officials tend to get uncomfortable as the RTI Act has the power of exposing scams. "The lowest threat comes from the government with everyone in power realising that it's changing the power equation as the citizens of India are asking questions. That's making them uncomfortable. Major scams have come out in the last two years and 20 to 30 per cent can be attributed to RTI," Gandhi said.
He also warned of threats from the judicial system. "There is threat from the judicial system as well. "A lot of progressive orders are landing in courts. The average citizen cannot go to them as it's a long battle. It can be done by rich people," Gandhi said.
"The biggest threat from Information Commissions. The state commissions have huge pendencies," he added.
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from silvercloud at 09:54, Jul 02, 2012
I live in hyderabad, and have filed a few times before. I can already see the RTI losing steam. I think it was cleverly crafted with a trump card loophole - the method of choosing information commissioners. With state having the powers, they simply are choosing compliant "their" people for the job and the result is hoard of pending cases.The fear an application under RTI created 2-3years ago is barely visible now in govt officers. This is why we need a Lokpal on the lines of Team Anna with all holes plugged. I agree it creates a very powerful body but without such power Lokpal too is bound to become pointless sooner or later. Unfortunate truth we will have to live with is this can only be brought about by those in power whose interests will be harmed with such a Jan Lokpal. Only way out is to keep trying and vote a cleaner political party like Loksatta to power.'via Blog this'
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