Issue 6 | 23 Dec. 2006

RTI activists face the music

It is the biggest weapon in the hands of the aam aadmi against the Establishment, but now the Empire has struck back. The Right To Information (RTI) Act has come quite handy to citizens seeking accountability from officials, but now the BMP officials are targeting RTI activists seeking information from civic agencies. According to Vikram Simha, member of Kria Katte, instances of harassment of activists by BMP officials are on the rise. He cited three such instances from the recent past viz.

"RTI activist Ravindranath Guru was assaulted by an unidentified stranger to browbeat him into submission

"Threatening phone calls made by an official asking RTI applicant Parthasarathy not to pursue seeking info on a building in Ramamurthynagar.

"Similar threats issued over phone asking a concerned citizen to stop seeking information on building violation in JP Nagar.

RTI activists are unfazed and believe that the BMP officials' misguided efforts will prove to be self-defeating in the end, as the Act has proved to be highly effective in the hands of the people in eliciting information from the authorities.