Observer Research Foundation Mumbai organized a roundtable on the Draft #RTI Rules 2017 for the Central Information Commission on Wednesday, May 17, 2017 at their office.
The Ministry of Personnel, Public grievances & Pensions released the Draft RTI rules 2017 for suggestions and inputs from various stakeholders. The roundtable was the first city-wide attempt in Mumbai to bring together prominent RTI activist, lawyers, bureaucrats and the media to compile a set of recommendations.
The roundtable was chaired by Mr. Shailesh Gandhi, Former Central Information Commissioner and RTI activist. The panel consisted of prolific bureaucrats like the State Information Commissioner Mr. A.K. Jain and former Chairman, Railway Board #VivekSahai. The panel also included RTI activists such as Bhaskar Prabhu, Anil Galgali and Sandeep Jalan and journalist #PriyankaKakodkar
The Important themes covered in the discussion were
• Better quality and faster disposal of Second Appeals
• Need for comprehensive rules
Problematic and rigid provisions in the Draft Rules
Digitalisation to reduce procedures and burden on applicants
Rule 12 of the Draft Rules, which deals with withdrawal/abatement of appeals
Speaking on Rule 12, #AKJain, State Information Commissioner, #Maharashtra, said “While withdrawal could be under duress, even if an appeal is withdrawn or the appellant dies, the Information Commission must put up a copy of the order and the information sought on the website of the commission”
He further added that there is no reason why Maharashtra cannot digitise the entire process including appeals, complaints and filing of applications.
Speaking on the need for comprehensive rules, #ShaileshGandhi, Former Central Information Commissioner, said “Time bound decisions are important and there should be a time limit of 30 days for return of complaints and appeals by the commission”. He also spoke of the need to provide compensation to the aggrieved applicants for non-compliance of the orders of the commission
Speaking on the need for better quality and fast disposal of second appeal Mr #BhaskarPrabhu, RTI activist, said “While there are many restrictions on the applicant in these rules there is no restriction on the commission to finish the appeal in a time bound manner”. Further the burden of servicing a copy of the appeal to the public authority should lie with the commission. This can be done through digitisation of the process.
Speaking on problematic and rigid provisions within these rules Adv. #SandeepJalan said “The word intervener, which does not feature anywhere in the act, has been added to the rules for the first time. This could potentially sabotage proceedings and frustrate appeals.”
Speaking on the impact of the rules on common people #AnilGalgali, RTI activist, said “Rule 15 which allows for a complaint to be converted into a second appeal is a positive step. He also spoke of the need to introduce video conferencing to facilitate easy presence of the appellants during proceedings.
About ORF Mumbai
Observer Research Foundation Mumbai is a multi-disciplinary public policy think-tank engaged in research and policy advocacy on issues concerning governance, international relations, education, health, urban renewal, inclusive and sustainable development, youth development and promotion of India’s cultural and artistic heritage.
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