-Outlook Transparency promotes democracy, more the reason for political parties to come under RTI Act's purview There was great public outrage when legislators in Mumbai beat up an assistant police inspector because he stopped an MLA's car for speeding on the Bandra-Worli sealink. The sentiment was: What arrogance! How can lawmakers have so little respect for the laws they themselves made? However, the amendment in Parliament aimed at removing political parties...
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EC sets cap on poll expenses: Rs 16 lakh for each candidate -Geeta Gupta
-The Indian Express New Delhi: The Election Commission of India has fixed the upper limit for poll expenses by each candidate contesting the upcoming Assembly elections in Delhi at Rs 16 lakh. The cap on poll expenses has been increased by Rs 2 lakh from the earlier Rs 14 lakh. The Delhi Election Commission said the expenditure limit would be followed "strictly" and monitored thoroughly. Even a winning candidate would face disqualification...
More »Treatment abroad: Government to reimburse the total cost incurred by bureaucrats -Aman Sharma
-The Economic Times NEW DELHI: An ailing economy and an emerging destination for medical tourism, India has just made it easier for its bureaucrats and their immediate family members to fly abroad for treatment at the government's expense. The Centre has decided to reimburse the total cost of treatment abroad as well as fund the return airfare for IAS, IPS and IFS officers, changing the 30-year-old rules at a time the government...
More »Fleeing the light -Aruna Roy and Nikhil Dey
-The Hindu Political parties have acted as judge, jury, supplicant and advocate in their move to amend the RTI Act and exempt themselves from its purview. Their rhetoric on transparency is more hollow than ever A friend called the other day, and said: "I want to congratulate all of you in the RTI community, because you have managed to do what no one, and nothing else has managed to for a long...
More »Finances are already open, says Left-Aarti Dhar
-The Hindu The Left parties have always maintained that the financial statements and accounts of a political party should be made publicly available, and hence strongly rejected the order of the Central Information Commission (CIC) that sought to bring six national parties under the purview of the Right to Information Act, 2005. Disputing the CIC's argument that parties were public authorities, Prakash Karat, general secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist),...
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