Dear Member of Parliament,
I am writing
this piece to you to voice my concern about a matter that is very important to
me. There are reports in the media, that a bill is likely to be presented in
Parliament to amend the RTI Act. The reasons being given publicly are that the
CIC order declaring political parties as Public authorities, subject to RTI is
bad in law. My understanding is that if an order, which is bad in law, is
issued by any statutory authority, the correct process is to challenge it at an
appropriate forum. The CIC order can be challenged in a writ in the High Court,
and there are many instances of these orders having been quashed in Courts. None
of the political parties has filed for a stay of this order, and now expects to
amend the law in Parliament to justify and legitimize their defiance of a
statutory order. With folded hands, I plead with you not to vote for this.
Parliament makes the law. Once it is made, it has to be adjudicated by the
appropriate statutory authorities. This is the Constitutional process. Defying
a statutory order by anyone sets a wrong example, and leads to breakdown of the
rule of law. After considerable discussion spread over months, and reference to
a Parliamentary Committee this law was passed. It has been rated as the second
best law in the World. Citizens cherish and value it immensely, since it
codifies a very important fundamental right of ours.
The law has
been used extensively and has uncovered certain arbitrariness and corruption.
More importantly, it has empowered the individual sovereign citizen, who is
today getting greater respect from many entities. The key principle in defining
the bodies to be covered by the RTI Act was based on the movement’s slogan, “
Hamara Paisa, Hamara Hisab.” Hence all Government bodies were covered by the
RTI Act and other Institutions which may be ‘substantially funded’ by
Government were covered. This was the Act passed by Parliament, based on which
the CIC has passed an order. I do concede that there is some reasonable scope
for a different opinion on what constitutes ‘substantial funding’ and if the
political parties feel that the CIC decision is flawed, they could challenge it
in Court. Parties have said that they are being monitored by the Election
Commission and the Income Tax department, and hence they need not provide
information to Citizens. All Institutions including Parliament are legitimized
to be intermediaries on behalf of ‘We the People’. None of these can replace
the people of India.
Some worries
have been voiced about how the political parties will be able to cope with the
RTI queries. I might point out that many small NGOs and aided schools are
complying with RTI without a major stress.
Subjecting
themselves to Right to Information by citizens has not damaged any Institution
in the Country. Some political representatives have claimed that they would not
like to be questioned about their processes of decision-making. RTI only gives
access to citizens to the records of a Public authority, and does not entitle
the citizen to question the merits of the decisions. Besides there are ten
exemptions in Section 8 (1) for information that need not be disclosed and
these exemptions passed by Parliament have worked well, and not resulted in
damaging any Institution since 2005. There is some recognition in most quarters
that it is slowly leading to getting some corrections and improvements in
Institutions and strengthening the hands of those who work in the spirit of
Public service and probity.
It is true that
there is a trust deficit between citizens and political leaders. RTI will
overcome this, and lead to a better understanding of the working of various
political parties. It will lead to citizens making a more informed choice of
political parties during elections. Besides, it will promote better and
systematic functioning of the political parties, once they subject themselves
to monitoring by the people they seek to serve. I am sure you are concerned
with the decline in the levels of probity in public service. This is an opportunity
to reverse this and start the journey towards a more meaningful service of
people. I am sure you are as concerned with the future of politics and your
party in a decade from now, as I am. Let us work together for a better
political democracy with a long-term vision for a better India. Please do not
vote for any amendments to the RTI Act. If your party is not going to vote for
amendments to the RTI Act, please state this publicly.
Regards
Vijay Kumbhar
