Issues and Challenges Facing RTI Act
| DOI | 10.1177/0019556120160205 |
| Published date | 01 April 2016 |
| Author | Anita Chaudhary |
| Date | 01 April 2016 |
| Subject Matter | Article |
ISSUES AND CHALLENGES FACING
RTI
ACT
ANITA CHAUDHARY
Right
to Information has been
hailed
as a path-breaking
legislation
of
recent years. Eleven years
of
implementation
and
the
Act
is considered to be the best thing that could happen
to
good
governance. Success stories abound highlighting the
empowerment
of
the people
in
getting their rights and dues.
However, the euphoria surrounding the Right seems
to
be fading.
People are still filing RTis, but the wait
for
a final resolution
seems to
be
getting
longer. Transparency, accountability
of
public
authorities, reduction in corruption,
people~
participation
in
policy formulation
and
implementation -all
objectives
of
the Act, seem to be moving
in
slow motion
or
just
going through the motion. The attitude
of
all stakeholders
towards effective implementation has lost the initial vigour.
Public authorities do not suo motu disclose information, give
out half-baked information, applicants file appeals
and
wait
for
final resolution
of
their queries as
in
a proverbial judicial process.
Meanwhile, as the balance
of
power
is
sought
to
be shifted in the
delivery
of
services, anti-social elements are taking advantage
ei~her
through threats to the query-raiser,
or
blackmailing other
stakeholders
in
the system.
Jn
this article, some
of
the important
challenges and issues being/aced
in
the implementation
of
the Act
have been discussed.
THE RIGHT to Information Act (RTI), 2005, is claimed to be a path-
breaking and historic piece oflegislation
in
recent years. Activists claim that
the Act has had a tremendous impact in matters
of
governance, exercising
of
citizens'
democratic rights, monitoring public good, introducing
transparency and curtailing corruption. There
is
a general impression that
the Act has succeeded to a large extent
in
creating a culture
of
transparency
in the government. There is a definite impact on reducing corruption. It
has empowered the common man in getting information which has an
impact on his welfare and has led to accountability
in
the government to
some extent. These claims are reasonable as the Act has given a weapon
To continue reading
Request your trial