Right To Information Act 2005 mandates timely response to citizen requests for government information. Right to Information empowers every citizen to seek any information from the government, Inspect any Government documents and seek certified photocopies. Right To Information is a part of Fundamental Rights under Article 19(1) of the Constitution.
It replaced the former Freedom of Information Act, 2002. The Authorities under RTI Act 2005 are called Public Authorities.
Enacted : 15 June 2005
Assented to : 22 June 2005
Commenced : 12 October 2005
The Right to Information Act gives citizens the right to ask for information and decide, based on the information received, whether their constitutional rights have been met. The RTI Act promotes Transparency and Accountability.
Aruna Roy is the mastermind behind the RTI Act, 2005. This act was enacted in order to consolidate the fundamental right in the Indian Constitution ‘Freedom Of Speech’. This law was passed by Parliament on 15 June 2005 and came fully into force on 12 October 2005.
Objective of Right to Information
- Provides a legal framework of citizens democratic right to access to information under the control of Public Authority.
- To promote transparency & accountability in the functioning of the Public Authorities.
Case Law
Raj Narain Vs Indira Nehru Gandhi (1975)
Supreme Court held that “the people of the country have a right to know every public act, everything that is done in a public way, by their public functionaries”. The Right to Information forms part of Fundamental Rights under Article 19(1)(a) as Right to Freedom of Speech And Expression. RTI is a fundamental right guaranteed under Constitution Of India.
The Adarsh Scam
The Adarsh Housing Society, a 31 – storey building in the area of Colaba, Mumbai was originally supposed to be a six – storey structure to house war widows and heroes of the 1999 Kargil War. However, the occupants of the complex ended up being bureaucrats and relatives of Politicians who were not at all connected with the Kargil war. The then Maharashtra Chief Minister’s relatives, incuding his mother – in – law, allegedly owned 3 flats in Adarsh Housing Society. The details obtained through RTI said Chavan approved the sale of 40% of the houses to Civilians.
In 2016, the Court ordered the building to be demolished holding that it was illegally constructed. However, the society appealed to the Supreme Court, which in 2018 ordered to stay on the demolition. On the orders of the Supreme Court, the Indian Army has secured the building.
Aishwarya Says:
I have always been against Glorifying Over Work and therefore, in the year 2021, I have decided to launch this campaign “Balancing Life”and talk about this wrong practice, that we have been following since last few years. I will be talking to and interviewing around 1 lakh people in the coming 2021 and publish their interview regarding their opinion on glamourising Over Work.
If you are interested in participating in the same, do let me know.
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We also have a Facebook Group Restarter Moms for Mothers or Women who would like to rejoin their careers post a career break or women who are enterpreneurs.
We are also running a series Inspirational Women from January 2021 to March 31,2021, featuring around 1000 stories about Indian Women, who changed the world. #choosetochallenge