-Nirupam Hazra
Good
governance, in modern democracy, means democratization of governance. In
participatory democracy people elect their leaders to govern them. But
governance is not the monopoly of elected leaders. When governance becomes the
privilege of select few or when the people who are governed are kept out of the
affairs of governance, it degenerates into misgovernance and becomes a travesty
of democracy.
Good governance is characterized by transparency and
accountability and the best way to ensure transparency and accountability in
governance is through increased and informed participation of people. People are biggest
stakeholder in governance, they have a critical and crucial role to play .So,
it is imperative that people have must have the right to know about the
activities of the government.
In 2005, Indian Parliament passed Right to
Information Act [RTI] which gave the common citizen the right to seek
information regarding government projects, schemes and other activities. It was
a landmark Act which came with the potentiality to change the very idea of
governance and the power equation between common people and the government. The
act was promulgated with the vision of democratization of governance and
empowerment of common people.
In the following sections of the article, it was
discussed how RTI act has empowered the common people, promoted good governance
and strengthened participatory democracy.
Accessibility:
In pre- RTI era governance was a hush-hush affair shrouded
in veil of secrecy where common people have no access. People’s role was only
constricted to the election of their leaders. Governance was conducted with an
uncanny secrecy. So, people did not have any right to know about the issues of
government activities. It was generally considered to be the benevolence and
generosity of the government if it wanted to share anything with common people.
Common people’s access to the affair of the governance was largely depended on
the magnanimity of the government and bureaucrats.
But RTI act gave the common people the much-needed right
to seek information about the works of their government. The act was given the
status of fundamental right and it is evident from the fact that how crucial it
is for the proper functioning of the government. RTI act marked the end of the
era of secrecy and ensured access of common citizen to the power corridors.
Empowerment:
According to French philosopher Michel Foucault,
power is derived from knowledge and information is the basic component of
knowledge. So, in this age of technology driven information revolution,
empowerment means access to information. The first thing any tyrannical
government does is to restrict the people’s access to the resources of
information and monopolize over it while the principle of good governance
demands free flow of information. Concentration of information inevitably leads
to centralization of power.
RTI act democratized the information and
decentralized the power. Power no more remains confined to select few, rather
it was made available equally to all the citizens. So, undoubtedly RTI serves
as a great tool of empowerment for the common people.
Participation:
RTI act facilitated and
encouraged the participation of common people in the process of governance.
Earlier people had the will, but did not have the way to take part in so-called
‘official’ affairs. But RTI act paved the way for active participation of the
common people in governance. People showed increased interest in the affairs of
governments and sought information regarding various issues affecting their
lives and well-being.
For any vibrant society participation of people in
governance is very essential. The main reason behind this is that governance is
not a prerogative of a particular group or class, it affects the whole society.
So, the government policies and schemes must be formulated keeping in mind the
interests of all the sections of the society, especially the downtrodden and
marginalized. It would only be possible
when all the sections are given right to take part in it.
Accountability:
RTI act played an
important role in restoring accountability in governance. The veil of secrecy
which shrouded the activity of legislative, executive and judiciary in pre-RTI
era became an impediment in the process of pinning accountability. It gave rise
to red-tapism and bureaucratic apathy. The government officials and bureaucrats
were not answerable to the people they work for.
But RTI act brought the end of this practice or
malpractice. It was no more possible for the government to pass the buck or
hide behind immunity of secrecy. RTI act
empowered the people to seek definite and direct answer from the officials of
their works or lack of it. People were no more at the mercy of the government
officials. So, accountability invariably led to efficiency and sense of
responsibility among government officials.
Transparency:
Transparency is the
cornerstone of any good government. But in Indian bureaucratic system and
government functionaries, transparency was an exception rather than being a
norm. According to latest [2012] ranking of Transparency International, India
stands at 94, out of 176 nations. The survey also revealed that 54% Indians
paid bribe, at least once, to get things done.
RTI act has the potentiality to tackle with this
rampant corruption in both at grass root level and at power corridors of high
and mighty. After enactment of this act, many a cases of corruption came to
light. From the Commonwealth Games to the 2G scam, RTI queries have been the
starting point of exposure in a score of recent cases of corruption. It is the
most powerful weapon in hands of common people to challenge the impenetrable
fortress of officialdom.
Good
governance:
Democracy is all about people’s participation and
empowerment. RTI act has played a significant role in strengthening democracy
by promoting decentralization of power and good governance. RTI made it
possible, to a great extent, for the people to decide and determine the way
they want to be governed. RTI act gave the common people a defining power to
shape the government schemes and policies. Governance was no more an arbitrary
privilege of select few. RTI act lent voice to the aspirations of ordinary
citizens in issues of governance.
Challenges:
The journey of RTI has not been a smooth sailing. It
faced challenges and resistance from various quarters. First one came from the
very creators of the act. For many it was like Frankenstein’s monster which
started haunting and hounding its creator. Bureaucrats and babus put stiff resistance and showed grudging reluctance while
parting away with information sought under RTI. The obvious reason for their
discomfort was that their activities were made open to public scrutiny. Therefore,
government officials often indulge in dilatory tactics by putting forth some
lame excuses. In such cases Information Commissioners have significant role to
play.
To limit the
power given under RTI, government made numerous attempts to amend the act. It
was successful in keeping CBI out of its purview. In 2006, government proposed an
amendment to deny public access to official file noting. The amendments had
sought to restrict disclosure of file noting only to social and developmental
issues. But under the pressure from civil right activists and criticism of
common people, the government had recently dropped the proposed amendment. The
common people must be always alert to oppose any move to dilute their right to
information.
RTI activists played the role of whistleblower in many
cases of corruption involving powerful people which exposed the crusader of
transparency to considerable risks. Recently many RTI activists were attacked
and killed for seeking information. Such incidents discouraged people from
seeking information. Measures must be taken to maintain confidentiality of
identity of information seekers and ensure their security.
Finally, the common people need to exercise
considerable restrain while using RTI. Many a times the information sought,
breached the privacy public figures. Such practices will give the government
reasons good enough to limit the act in the name of safeguarding privacy. Apart
from this, the act is often used or misused to settle personal grudges and
vendetta. Doing this will only reduce this act of empowerment into a tool of
blackmailing.
Conclusion:
I think the best way to deal with all these
challenges while promoting good governance is by making the act redundant. The
governments, instead of waiting for the common people to seek information, must
voluntarily make all the information available to the people. It will not only promote good governance but
also increase the trust between government and the people it governs.
(This article has been previously published in
Yojana (English) January 2013 issue.)
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