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LATEST NEWS UPDATES | Singh articulates concern over RTI

Singh articulates concern over RTI

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published Published on Oct 15, 2011   modified Modified on Oct 15, 2011

-The Telegraph

 

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today called for a re-look at the Right to Information Act to ensure it is used only in the public interest.

At the same time, he ruled out any dilution of the law and said “empowering our citizens” with RTI was a “huge step forward” towards “curbing corruption and improving the process of governance”. Singh promised to build on “these achievements” by bringing legislation to protect whistleblowers.

“There are concerns that need to be discussed and addressed honestly. A situation in which a public authority is flooded with requests for information having no bearing on public interest is something not desirable,” the Prime Minister told the annual convention of information commissioners, echoing the concerns voiced by several of his ministers.

“We must, therefore, pool all our wisdom, our knowledge, and our experience to come to a conclusion on how to deal with vexatious demands for information, without at the same time hindering the flow of information to those whose demands genuinely serve public interest,” he said.

Several cabinet ministers have in the recent past called for a larger debate on the misuse of RTI, which they said was adversely affecting governance.

Singh said today there was concern that RTI could end up discouraging honest, well-meaning public servants from giving full expression to their views.

“I think we need to remember here that a point of view brought under public scrutiny and discussion in an isolated manner may sometimes present a distorted or incomplete picture of what really happened in the processes of making the final decisions,” he said.

The Prime Minister cautioned against the adverse impact of RTI on the deliberative processes in the government and suggested a critical examination of the exemption clauses.

“I am happy that there is a special focus in your conference on the exemption clauses of the Act and I would urge all of you to come up with concrete suggestions in this area. There are also issues of privacy. The Act does have provisions to deal with privacy issues but there are certain grey areas that require further debate,” he said.

Ministers have said in the past that communications leading to a cabinet decision or a policy decision of the government should be shared under the RTI Act only after the decision is taken, not before, and also that file notings should be exempt.

Singh said the authorities should make public information not covered by the exemptions without waiting for RTI applications. “If this is done, a lot of time will be saved both for public authorities as well as for citizens,” he said.

Hoping that the conference will discuss “the commitment and the responsibility of the private sector companies for dissemination of certain basic information relating to their operations”, he said this was important in the context of an increasing number of projects being taken up in the public-private partnership mode. The conference is being attended by experts from trade and industry bodies such as Ficci, CII and Assocham.

Suggestions made at the conference are expected to be taken seriously to amend the Act amid a growing feeling in the government that it was being used to settle personal, political and corporate scores and that applications for information not in the larger public interest were stretching government machinery.

The Telegraph, 15 October, 2011, http://www.telegraphindia.com/1111015/jsp/nation/story_14626660.jsp


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