Officials to feel RTI heat if they don't mend their ways

Unruly officials will soon feel the heat of RTI activism, thanks to Rashtriya Suchana Adhikar Karyadal, a team of RTI activists from six states.

The crusaders: (From left) Bimal Khemani, C J Karira, Malay Bhattacharya, Krishnaraj Rao, J S D Pani and Rakesh Agarwal

Unruly officials will soon feel the heat of RTI activism, thanks to Rashtriya Suchana Adhikar Karyadal, a team of RTI activists from six states.u00a0

J S D Pani (63), an RTI activist and president of Mahiti Hakku Jagruthi Vedike in Karnataka, along with his five friends from Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, West Bengal and New Delhi is all set to launch a protest in the six states.

R S A Karyadal, also known as the national RTI working group, have set January 31 as the final date for officials in six states to abide by the RTI Act, failing which, thousands of activists will start a movement against officials. "It will be a unique movement," said Pani.

The movement

The six RTI activists have expertise in various fields.

While Aligarh-based Bimal Khemani (63) has expertise in consumer issues, C J Karira (51) an activist from Secunderabad, is a computer- expert. Krishnaraj Rao (43) from Mumbai is a journalist who has expertise in functioning of State Information Commissions; Malay Bhattacharya (38) from Kolkata is the founder of West Bengal RTI manch and Rakesh Agarwal (42) campaigns for judicial accountability and reforms.

"The movement is against officials who are not acting according to the RTI provisions," said Pani. "We have set a deadline to correct it. If they don't abide by the rules, we will start our protest in all six states."

National RTI working group through a letter to the chief ministers, SICs in the six states they belong to, has urged chief state/central information commissioners to issue circulars to the heads of all public authorities in their jurisdiction to follow RTI provisions.

This includes putting penalties and disciplinary action for breach of RTI deadlines under Section 20, putting onus on public information officers to justify denial under section 19(5) with responses in the same language.

"This will be a silent protest and we will educate and create awareness among people in this regard. They will later take the officials to task."u00a0

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