The slow unravelling of India’s transparency law

Why is it in the News?

• 20th anniversary: The Right to Information (RTI) Act was enacted on 12 October 2005.
• Erosion of effectiveness: Activists and Information Commissioners warn that the law has lost its impact due to neglect, bureaucratic apathy, and institutional delays.
• Rising filings, rising rejections: Record RTI filings (1.75 million in 2023-24) contrast with the highest-ever rejection rates (67,615 applications).
• Concerns about citizen access: The law, once a symbol of empowerment and accountability, now faces fear and obstacles in implementation.

Relevance

• GS-2: Governance
  • Transparency, accountability, e-governance, citizen empowerment.
  • Institutional challenges in administrative law implementation.
• GS-3: Social Issues / Public Policy
  • Role of civil society in governance reform.
  • Implementation of rights-based legislation and citizen oversight mechanisms.

RTI Act and Its Origins

Grassroots beginnings

• MKSS (Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan) founded in 1990 by Aruna Roy and colleagues in Rajasthan.
  • Early public hearings (1994–95) exposed corruption in schemes like Jawahar Rozgar Yojana, Apna Gaon Apna Kaam, Indira Awas Yojana.
  • These hearings led to state-level RTI laws in Tamil Nadu (1997), Goa, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Delhi by 2001.

National legislation

• National Campaign for People’s Right to Information (NCPRI) drafted the national law.
  • Passed by Parliament: 12 May 2005, Presidential assent: 15 June 2005, enforced from 12 October 2005.

Constitutional backing

• Recognised as part of Article 19(1)(a) – freedom of speech and expression.
  • Landmark cases:
    • State of Uttar Pradesh vs Raj Narain – first recognition of citizens’ right to information.
    • SP Gupta vs Union of India – affirmed RTI as integral to free speech.
    • Shri Kulwal vs Jaipur Municipal Corporation – explicitly included under Article 19.

Overview

Implementation gaps

• Increasing vacancies in Information Commissions, leading to millions of pending cases.
• RTI applications often tossed between departments under Section 6(3) without response.
• Citizens fear police visits or intimidation when filing requests.

Erosion of accountability

• Officials face no consequences for ignoring RTI requests.
• Public perception: RTI effectiveness has regressed, unlike its early promise of transparency.
• 3T formula (Timely, Transparent, Trouble-Free) promoted by PM Modi has not materialized in practice.

Historical significance vs current reality

• RTI began as a citizen empowerment tool, exposing scams and corruption effectively until 2014.
• Activist movements (MKSS, NCPRI) drove major policy and governance reforms, including MGNREGA.
• Currently, official hostility, procedural hurdles, and lack of political will have hollowed out its power.

Impact on civil society

• Reduced participation by NGOs and social activists in using RTI.
• Disillusionment among journalists and citizen activists, with many abandoning RTI as a tool.
• RTI, once a vehicle for accountability, now increasingly symbolizes bureaucratic inertia and citizen frustration.

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