'By extending the definition of 'personal' to include institutions and not just individuals, the State has equipped itself with a tool to block access to most kinds of information.'
The outfit suggested that the government amend the Information Technology Act to classify all such content as pornography, which people should only be able to access by punching in their Aadhaar details or their fingerprints. Archis Mohan reports
Samariya, the first Dalit to have been appointed to the post, was working as information commissioner in the transparency panel Central Information Commission (CIC). A 1985-batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of Telangana cadre, Samariya retired after serving as the labour and employment secretary in the Government of India. He was sworn in as the information commissioner on November 7, 2020.
Chowdhury said the voice of the Opposition has been "ignored" and that is not good for democracy.
Tamilisai Soundararajan, who assumed office as Governor in 2019, has been accusing the state government of not adhering to protocol with regard to her office.
It is sad that the legislative pre-consultation on such an important bill is being done in a very biased manner, notes Shailesh Gandhi, former Central Information Commissioner, recounting his experience with Minister Rajeev Chandrashekhar.
For former central information commissioner Shailesh Gandhi, the RTI Act remains a powerful ally, finds A Ganesh Nadar
'It was more than ego.' 'It carried with it a sincere belief that he was the quintessence of the country, that the country's destiny was irrevocably intertwined with his destiny.' An excerpt from T J S George's The Dismantling of India: In 35 Portraits.
'As CIC, you have the power to comment on policy matters. 'If you have very strong beliefs and you know your rulings will be reported, you will express your beliefs.'
There is a great need to introduce a transparent process to select information commissioners, who are expected to oversee transparency, says former Central Information Commissioner Shailesh Gandhi.
'This is not Ahmedabad Gymkhana but people's house'
The company should be given a fair chance to be heard in the matter, the judges said and posted the matter for further hearing on December 19.
Are victims of bomb blasts and terrorist activists given only "low cost" artificial limbs during rehabilitation? The issue has been highlighted by Central Information Commissioner Shailesh Gandhi in a letter written to Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad asking for "good treatment" for victims of bomb blasts and terror acts.
President Pratibha Patil on Monday made public her movable and immovable properties worth over Rs 2.49 crore on the request of Central Information Commissioner as she completed four years in office. Rediff.com takes a look at the total worth of some other politicians in the country, and tries to find out where our President stands.
The files of Central Information Commissioner Shailesh Gandhi's office have already been digitised while the process is on for the rest of the offices of seven commissioners, Chief Information Commissioner Wajahat Habibullah and other officers.
Madras High Court has stayed the Central Information Commissioner's (CIC) proceedings on declaring the Board of Control for Cricket in India as a public authority under the RTI Act.
Citing lack of staff as a key reason for the under-performance of Information Commissions, the Central Information Commission has written to the government asking it to provide more staff and resources in order to fulfill the requirements of implementing the RTI Act satisfactorily.
Shailesh Gandhi, convener of the National Campaign for People's Right to Information, who was appointed a Central Information Commissioner in 2008, had an hour-long conversation with rediff.com readers on Monday evening on the Right to Information Act. Here is the complete chat transcript:
Syed Firdaus Ashraf/Rediff.com finds out how the government is seeking to change the RTI Act, and what impact it will have on the Right to Information.
'No Indian political party functions in a democratic way.'
'If people want to blackmail others to get information or harm things, so why will someone give them information?'
The former information commissioner, who is known for his pro-transparency orders in several high-profile cases, said the proposed changes "seriously undermine" the autonomy of information commissions.
'The finance ministry and public sector banks have tried to keep the names of wilful defaulters secret.' 'Secrecy and concealing information are inbred among banks and even the RBI,' observes Debashis Basu, editor, www.moneylife.in.
The appeals came against orders of the Central Information Commissioner in various cases.
'PM-CARES money is for the relief of citizens, so what is the secrecy then?' 'Why will it harm anyone if it is revealed where the money came from and where it is going?' 'What is there to hide?'
'The Gogoi episode can lead to our evolving a rational way to get better people who will head our checks and balances of democracy,' says former Chief Information Commissioner Shailesh Gandhi.
'The prime minister has taken pre-emptive action by not appointing a Chief Information Commissioner at all to render it dysfunctional.'
'The bureaucracy is also hardening its stand and in most cases has realised that the commissioners are not really committed to transparency,' says former Central Information Commissioner Shailesh Gandhi.
The cops' RTI reply does clear the air about the varsity chief's role on that eventful night. The letter, however, fails to explain how his 'unarmed police' resorted to merciless lathi-charge, video footage of which was broadcast by many television channels.
Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan feels the House can change the rules regarding recognising the Leader of Opposition in the absence of any party getting the minimum ten per cent of the total strength for the purpose.
Budding RTI activist from Chennai files request with ONGC. Instead of response, police comes asking about her.
This Act had to be excluded from the list of the obsolete laws to be repealed as some of its provisions provide security to the pensioners against attachment of pension
For the past 10 years or more, the RBI has been turning down dozens of applications under the RTI Act that sought disclosing the list of wilful defaulters and the RBI's inspection reports. In fact, it is the only organisation that has a granular and complete view of the heist that has been going on for 25 years at least. But it has escaped any blame for the multiple rounds of bankruptcy and massive periodic recapitalisation of public sector banks caused by bad loans. In fact, they don't want anyone to know how incompetent and collusive they have been in handling bad loans, says Debashis Basu.
'Does a thousand-year-old sculpture worshipped in a thriving religion belong to a foreign museum or the temple from which it was extracted?' Congress MP Shashi Tharoor asked angrily. 'They legitimately belonged to India and people of past, present and future generations are interested in re-possessing them,' a central information commissioner declared last month.
Former Central Board of Direct Taxes chief K V Chowdary and Information Commissioner Vijai Sharma were on Monday appointed Central Vigilance Commissioner and Chief Information Commissioner, posts which have remained vacant for over nine months on which the government drew some flak.
Senior most Information Commissioner Vijai Sharma is tipped to be new Chief Information Commissioner, while former Central Board of Direct Taxes chief K V Chowdary is understood to be in the running for the Central Vigilance Commissioner's post.
'Article 370 is a 'temporary' provision which should be made 'permanent' to assure special status to J&K.'
'The exemption given by the government to the CBI appears to be have been guided by its desire to stop exposure of corruption which goes against the preamble of the RTI Act which aims to curb corruption,' says former Chief Information Commissioner Shailesh Gandhi.
The apex court said the present CBI director would head the special investigation team which would look into the report of the apex court-appointed panel headed by M L Sharma, a former special director of the agency, that had prima facie indicted Sinha in the matter.
Stay orders keep law out of citizen access even years after CIC rulings on opening market institutions to scrutiny
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