Right to know
it is a right. Yet on paper it looks more like a privilege granted to the electorate than a right. However, despite its shortcomings, the Right to Information Bill, that was recently passed by the Rajasthan Legislative Assembly, is definitely a step forward towards ensuring more transparency in the state's functioning.
The bill was introduced in the Rajasthan Assembly after persistent demands by voluntary organisations. It aspires to provide a "clean and responsive' administration based on the broad principles of accountability and openness. But given the range of restrictions and the government's guarded approach to the provisions of the bill, it remains to be seen whether the statute will serve its purpose of informing the electorate about the workings of their leaders.
In the initial draft of the bill, there were at least 19 restrictions imposed on the disclosure of information regarding the affairs of the state and its public figures to the citizens. The National Campaign for People's Right to Information ( ncpri )
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