RTI amendment move part of push for 'regressive' changes in pro-people laws

By A Representative
The National Alliance of People's Movements (NAPM) has said that the proposed amendments to the Right to Information (RTI) Act is part of sinister attempts by the NDA Government to "arbitrarily push ahead regressive" changes in multiple pro-people legislations passed after protracted nation-wide struggles and consultative parliamentary processes when UPA was in power before 2014.
Calling it a move to "dilute" the RTI Act, "one of the most potent tools to ensure governmental accountability", NAPM said, the amendment would undermine the independence and autonomy of information commissions, which a matter of "grave concern."
Introduced in the Lok Sabha on July 19 "amidst a shroud of secrecy and there were no public consultations in this regard", one of India's topmost grassroots organizations said, the law’s passage in Parliament in 2005 was a victory and acknowledgement of the tireless efforts of peoples’ movements and campaigns that represented the will and intention of lakhs of citizens to keep democracy alive.
Those who have endorsed the statement include Medha Patkar, Aruna Roy, Nikhil Dey, Shankar Singh, Dr Binayak Sen, Lingraj Azad, others.

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