-Outlook While some question my motives in seeking information on Rahul Gandhi's foreign trips, others say that parting with such information will jeopardize his security. Really?  I am really puzzled by some of the responses to my RTI regarding Rahul Gandhi’s foreign trips. One set of persons have echoed the arguments used by Congress spokespersons Manish Tiwari and Jayanti Natarajan questioning my motives for demanding information that “violates the privacy of Rahul Gandhi.”...

-Outlook The Supreme Court has ruled that the details of a person's income tax returns and performance of an employee are "personal information" which cannot be divulged under the provisions of the Right to Information Act unless a larger public interest is involved. The apex court added that under the transparency law, information pertaining to the performance of an employee or officer cannot be made public as it is a matter between...

-The Hindu Right to Information (RTI) activist Subhash Chandra Agrawal says there is something suspicious about why the Cabinet Secretariat is not divulging the full biodata of former Central Vigilance Commissioner (CVC) Polayil Joseph Thomas, and other details about him that were placed before the high power committee headed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Mr. Agrawal, who had sought these details and filed an appeal against the order of the Chief Public...

-Forbes India Why the recent Supreme Court ruling threatens to kill citizens’ Right to Information The Supreme Court has placed the Central Information Commission (CIC), the apex body to deal with appeals regarding RTI, as well as the Information Commissions across the states in a fine pickle. On September 13, a division bench of the Supreme Court, chaired by Justice AK Patnaik and Justice Swatanter Kumar, passed an order which would fundamentally change...

-The Hindu Aggrieved women have received rations only thrice in the past five years Two semi-literate housewives, Beena and Mitra Devi, hesitantly but wilfully trail us, ration card in hand, on a hot Saturday afternoon. We are walking towards Fair Price Shop No. 7980 in Harsh Vihar near Delhi’s border with Ghaziabad. Though fearful of the ration shop owner and his toughs, these two women realise it is now or never. They...