Seeking information under the Right To Information (RTI) Act in Karnataka has just got tougher, as the State government has found a Supreme Court order a convenient tool to delay providing information under the law. Gone are the days when the Public Information Officers (PIOs) were bound to provide information within 30 days as laid down in the RTI Act, 2005. Under the new scheme of things, it will take an...
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Govt dallying RTI implementation by Mushtaq Ahmad
Despite its introduction with much fanfare three years ago, Jammu and Kashmir government has abruptly slowed down on the implementation of Right to Information (RTI) Act, which was designed to bring transparency and accountability to public offices. According to the Act enacted in March 2009, it is incumbent upon the state government to launch major awareness campaign for general public through various mediums of communication and languages, especially for disadvantaged communities...
More »GR Sofi, first Chief Information Commissioner of SIC (J&K) talks to Greater Kashmir Team
THE FIRST CHIEF INFORMATION COMMISSIONER (CIC) OF STATE INFORMATION COMMISSION (SIC) G R SOFI, TALKS ABOUT THE RTI ACT AND HOW THE COMMISSION IS WORKING TO ACHIEVE ITS GOALS IN A CONVERSATION WITH GREATER KASHMIR TEAM. HERE ARE THE EXCERPTS. Rajeev Sharma: Do you think the present legislation is enough to achieve the objectives that it is supposed to? G R Sofi: Last month I was in Delhi to attend an annual...
More »Delivering an effective RTI by Anupam Saraph
Bhausaheb R Wakchaure, Shiv Sena MP from Shirdi, has introduced a private members bill (Bill No. 70 of 2011) proposing that information requested under the (Right To Information) RTI can be denied to applicants who do not state the reason they require the information or it is the opinion of the competent authority that reasons given by the applicant are not adequate or are factually incorrect. The proposed bill will destroy...
More »Wajahat Habibullah, chairperson, National Commission for Minorities interviewed by Kavita Chowdhury
Wajahat Habibullah, chairperson, National Commission for Minorities, speaks to Kavita Chowdhury on reservation for Muslims, the RTI Act and the controversy over withdrawal of AFSPA in Kashmir. You had recently visited Rajasthan. In Bharatpur district’s Gopalgarh village, some members of the minority community, Mev Muslims, were killed and the state administration was accused of mishandling the matter. What is your view? A communal riot is an unpardonable crime. The state government has taken...
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