Mumbai: Democracy, as
embodied in the average citizen’s Right to Information (RTI), is
striding ahead confidently. A group of Mumbaikars from various fields,
armed with a certificate course in RTI, is ready to cut the masters of
red tape to size, to jolt the sultans of sloth and bring the rajas of
babudom down to earth.
The 24 men and women who comprise this group have completed a
certificate course from a south Mumbai college on how to use RTI
professionally—they include businessmen, college professors, retired
bankers and chartered accountants. All of them have now mastered the
art of framing queries under the RTI Act to goad the civic authorities
into action. With time, they hope to become advisors and consultants to
the wider citizenry.
“The act is no longer a mystery for us. We now know the process and how
to use it,’’ said Priyavadan Nanavati (73), a chartered accountant.
That, according to most, has been their biggest gain.
What is right to info?
The Right to Information Act 2005 (Act No. 22 of 2005) is a law enacted
by the Indian parliament giving citizens access to the records of
central and state governments. The act applies to all states and Union
Territories of India, except Jammu and Kashmir, which is covered under
a statelevel law. Under the provisions of the act, any citizen
(including those in J&K) may request information from a ‘public
authority’ (a body of government or ‘instrumentality of state’) which
is required to reply expeditiously or within thirty days. RTI ‘grads’
can play larger role in society
Mumbai: A new breed of Right to Information (RTI) activists is set to
sink its teeth into data hitherto kept secret from the public.
Activists like Shailesh Gandhi have taught them that they are not
“beggars’’ or supplicants for information. They are applicants for
their rights.
“For 14 years, the road outside my factory in Vithalwadi was lying
unrepaired. While doing the course I filed a simple RTI query asking
the concerned department about the status of the road and within no
time, the repair work started,’’ said Pradeep Raisinghani (39), a
businessman.
“We now know that getting the required information depends on framing
the right questions,’’ said Pervez Homi Lentin (61), a retired
professor of physics. Participants realized that vague and abstract
questions could easily be turned down by government departments and
they have learnt to hone their skills in framing queries which will
elicit the best response.
“For instance, we now know it’s better never to ask the BMC ‘when’ a
particular piece of work will be completed. Rather, we demand
information on the funds allocated for it, the officer utilising them
and the progress reports submitted by him to his ward office,’’ said
Leann Almeida, a law student. Similarly, while seeking information
about a file reported as lost, these experts will ask which officer
reported it as lost and whether a police complaint was lodged or not.
“These small things ensure that the officers cannot shirk their
responsibility,’’ Almeida added.
Neelima Chandiramani, principal of the K C College of Law which
conducted the course, said that in the long run she expected those who
had done the course to play a larger role in society as specialists on
RTI. “Pleas filed by those who did the course will never be vague or
badly drafted. Moreover, most of them have been professionals in their
own field and know how the system works. They will be able to advise
others on how to go about their own queries,’’ Chandiramani added.
In preparing for real-life difficulties in getting information from
government departments which often try to block it, two of the
participants conducted role-play exercises in which they acted as an
applicant seeking information and an information officer denying it,
while a third participant played out the role of the appelate authority.
They thus re-created situations such as those they would have to face
when they filed appeals before an information commissioner. “Thanks to
all this training we now know that we cannot be denied information on
frivolous grounds,’’ said Khorshed Nayak, a retired bank officer.
“A beginning has been made and I will use my knowledge to help others
who are made to run from pillar to post because they don’t know how to
corner the officials,’’ said Najimuddin Chunawala (59), a Dongri-based
businessman
The results of the course are already showing on a bigger scale. Nugum
Lakhani (40), an investment advisor, filed an RTI query with the Union
finance ministry about a 2007 amendment which allowed joint applicants
of government bonds to have nominees. “Immediately, the ministry sent a
notification to all banks about the changed rule. The beneficiary was
the public at large as it will now no longer have to go through
hundreds of formalities associated with government bonds,’’ Lakhani
said.
The participants were given lectures by experts in the field like
Shailesh Gandhi and state information commissioner Ramanand Tiwari.
“The purpose of the course is to equip the people themselves to use the
act for their benefit rather than to limit its use to a handful of
activists,’’ said Gandhi.
http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Repository/getFiles.asp?Style=OliveXLib:LowLevelEntityToPrint_TOI&
Type=text/html&Locale=english-skin-custom&Path=TOIM/2008/09/18&ID=Ar00104
Copyright @ The Times of India.
