Calls for inspection of files on India-Pakistan statement issued at Sharm-el-Sheikh  The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) finds itself in a spot with the Central Information Commission (CIC) calling for the inspection of files related to the India-Pakistan joint statement issued on the sidelines of last year’s Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) summit at Sharm-el-Sheikh in Egypt. With India having a history of not permitting access to any foreign office file, no matter...

A man who claimed he accepted a supari (contract) of Rs 1 lakh to kill rti activist Satish Shetty but backed out when he realised his target was “working for the benefit of the common man” led police in Pune to an advocate who has been arrested in connection with the Shetty murder case. Pune rural police today sought court permission for brain-mapping and a narco test on advocate Vijay...

Right to Information (rti) activists from Pune came together on Sunday and formed an rti council to serve as a repository of information obtained by various activists. “Once the information obtained by anyone under the rti is available with a council, there will be less threat to an individual’s life,” said Vivek Velankar, an rti activist, while speaking to journalists after a public meeting to demand justice for the murdered rti...

Like India’s topmost judge, lawyers’ regulatory bodies have been made accountable to the public under the Right to Information Act. The Central Information Commission (CIC) has ruled that bar councils are public authorities under the rti Act and cannot refuse to share information lying with them with the public. The ruling is likely to kick off a rush of rti applications to the bar councils, professional bodies that are expected to maintain...

Three persons were sent on Saturday to police custody till January 25 in connection with the murder of rti activist Satish Shetty (39). The three were identified as Vijay Dabhade, Parshuram Telugu and Pramod Waghmore. “Dabhade is a lawyer, Waghmore is a clerk in his office, while Telugu was one of Dabhade’s clients,” Bhausaheb Andhalkar, an officer of the Pune Rural police’s local crime branch heading one of the five...