Investigating and law enforcement agencies are concerned over the growing number of attempts to misuse Right to Information (RTI) to settle personal scores and animosities, and make personal gains. A senior official from one of the investigating agencies told Business Standard that serious concerns were raised in several meetings convened by the government with the Income Tax Department, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and others in the recent past. “It has...

The Chief Information Commissioner (CIC) GR Sufi Friday said that under Right to Information Act, police is answerable to public if they detain any person without any warrant. “There is a provision in the State RTI Act-2009 wherein if somebody is detained by police without a warrant, his family or relatives can file an application in local police station and the concerned Station House Officer has to furnish this information within...

Denying any rift between Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee and Home Minister P Chidambaram, Corporate Affairs Minister Veerappa Moily today called for a “national debate” on the scope of the Right to Information Act (RTI), saying it “transgresses into the independent functioning of the government”. This came in the context of Janata Party leader Subramanian Swamy citing a Finance Ministry note that has brought the spotlight on Chidambaram’s role in the 2G...

The 2G note has exposed the deep political rift in the top echelons of the UPA regime, spreading fear among insiders that the row will trigger repercussions within the Congress as well as the government in the coming months. The Congress leadership has decided to fully back the home minister for now but future responses will depend on the assessment of the Supreme Court. The apex court will decide whether P....

-The Times of India   In a decision, perhaps first in the region following the implementation of Right to Information (RTI) Act 2005, a consumer court in Mohali has held that a person seeking information under the RTI Act is a "consumer" and the department delaying information can be held liable for "deficiency in service" under the Consumer Protection Act. The decision was pronounced on Wednesday by the district consumer forum, Mohali,...