-The Hindu Court, in Jan. 2020, asked Centre to file reply to plea, which contended that RTI Amendment Act of 2019 and its Rules cripple CIC’s objectivity, independence. The Supreme Court on Monday criticised the Union government for having not filed a reply for over a year to a petition by parliamentarian Jairam Ramesh challenging the amendments made to the Right to Information Act. The court, in January 2020, asked the Centre to...
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Agriculture Ministry’s Claim on Farm Bill 'Consultations' Runs Contrary to its RTI Reply -Gaurav Vivek Bhatnagar
-TheWire.in The Centre claimed in the Supreme Court that efforts had been made to speak to stakeholders before the laws were passed. Why, then, does the agricultural ministry have no record of these efforts? New Delhi: In an affidavit filed before the Supreme Court on Monday, the Centre claimed that “serious, sincere and constructive efforts [were] made by the Central Government to engage with the limited number of protesting farmers who are...
More »Nikhil Dey, well-known rights activist and founder of the Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan (MKSS), interviewed by Anupama Katakam (Frontline.in)
-Frontline.in Interview with Nikhil Dey, rights activist and founder of the Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan, on 15 years of the Right to Information Act. India’s Right to Information (RTI) Act, which was promulgated in 2005, is considered one of the most advanced and powerful pieces of rights legislation in the world. Although an evolved law that forces governments to become more transparent and accountable, almost every regime has shown reluctance to uphold...
More »National Population Register: Questionnaire is being finalised, says Registrar General of India -Vijaita Singh
-The Hindu “The Hindu”, in a query filed under the RTI Act, sought information on the expected date of the first phase of Census 2021 and an update of the NPR. The office of the Registrar General of India (RGI) has said the schedule or the questionnaire of the National Population Register (NPR) is “being finalised” and the information about the expected date of first phase of Census 2021 is “not available.” The...
More »FM Sitharaman says RBI had no objection to electoral bonds issuance by SBI; documents point otherwise -Udit Misra
-The Indian Express It is unclear why the government initially assured the RBI that RBI "alone" will issue electoral bonds as it could not do so under Section 31(3) of RBI Act. On Tuesday, replying to a question in Rajya Sabha raised by DMK’s Tiruchi Siva about what the Reserve Bank’s “indirect” approval to the issuance of electoral bonds meant, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said: “RBI, being a stakeholder, was involved in...
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