India: the world's largest democracy. Once in every five years, when this massive country with a population of 125 crore people comes together to elect its leaders, it carries out an activity so massive in its sheer size, that it is unparalleled anywhere on this planet. And this always will be our biggest strength.
How many of us really think it through, though? Yes, we sure do elect our leaders, and provided the number of our people, it's a massive feat. But how many of us keep a check on our leaders once we give them their offices? How many of us keep ourselves aware of the working of our government? How many of us bother to keep a tab on how our own money is being spent? How many of us inquire about things that are hidden from us but affect our daily lives massively?
Sadly, most of us, including me, are guilty of answering all those questions negatively.
In the Gettysburg Address, Abraham Lincoln couldn't have described the meaning of democracy any better when he called it a form of government, "of the people, by the people and for the people." But if it is us, the people, that elect our government to power, it is also our right to know about its functioning. If it is us, the people, that pay for every Rupee of expense that is incurred to make our country better, it is also our right to know where and how that Rupee is being spent. If it is us, the people, that make the nation what it is, it is also our right to know what are the laws that govern us and keep us one.
That most of us are ignorant, knowingly or unknowingly, about our rights as a fact portrays a sad but true picture of India. But what is ironical is that most of us don't even have knowledge of our right to know! We all take to arms when we realize that there are things that are being hidden from us by the people whom we ourselves elect to rule us. But again, our ignorance beats us when we fail to understand that the biggest weapon in our arsenal actually helps us to know all that we need to know! That weapon we hold in our hands is the RTI.
A lot of us have been taught about RTI in schools. But not many of us are completely aware of all of its aspects because it is relatively a new law than compared to the plethora of laws the British left us back with, that pre-date a hundred years.
So, what exactly is RTI?
If I have to define the meaning of Right To Information, in the simplest words possible, then there is nothing more suggestive than the title itself. Right To Information is the right given to every Indian citizen to seek information, including records, documents, memos, e-mails, opinions, advises, press releases, circulars, orders, logbooks, contracts, papers, samples, models, data material held by the government at all levels (Central, State, and local level), in any electronic form and information relating to any private body which can be accessed by a public authority under any other law for the time being in force. In simple words, it is a law that allows the citizens of India to find out anything they want to know, related to any form of government office or government department in India.
Enacted on 12th October, 2005, the Right to Information (RTI) Act, like most Indian laws, applies to the whole of India, except the state of Jammu & Kashmir. Some provisions of the Act came into force with immediate effect viz. obligations of public authorities, designation of Public Information Officers and Assistant Public Information Officers and constitution of Central Information Commission, constitution of State Information Commission, non-applicability of the Act to Intelligence and Security Organizations and power to make rules to carry out the provisions of the Act.
Why do we really need RTI?
The fact that India is a democracy in which people elect their own leaders, de jure presupposes the need of the people of the country to have access to the right to know all that they must know about the functioning of their government that they themselves put into power.
Right to Information provides for timely response by the government machinery to any query posted by the citizens. The objective of Right to Information is empower citizens and improve transparency and accountability in the government. This also helps in reducing corruption and promotes a more direct interaction between people, thereby facilitating democracy further. Also, a highly vigilant group of citizens can make informed democratic decisions.
To put it all in a nutshell, imagine a massive company. A company is a large of body of people who come together to turn into reality certain interests that they commonly hold and share. A company's owners and members are called its shareholders. These shareholders invest their money into the company and exercise their voting rights to elect a board of directors that is entrusted with the job of making the company earn profits so that the interest of the shareholders are realized. But if this board is entrusted with such an important responsibility, especially when it is the personal wealth of the shareholders that is involved in the business, then the shareholders rightly have every right to know how their precious money is being spent, how their company is functioning and what are the decisions being taken by the board.
If you got the drift of what I am leading to, then do realize that India is a gigantic company of 125 crore shareholders who elect its board of directors in the form of the government. You and me, we have the right to know how our money is being spent, what decisions are being taken by our leaders and how our government is functioning. It is too precious a right we enjoy to be taken lightly and ignored.
Over the next few days, we at The InfoMission Project will strive hard to make all our citizens aware of this invaluable weapon that we Indians hold in our hands. We shall look into the most minute aspects of RTI, for example, how to file one, the fee required to be paid, the government offices exempted from giving out information, etc.
Come, join us. You have the right to know. Know the right.
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