Govt defends move to keep parties out of RTI Sibal Says CIC Order Flawed,Defends Plan To Amend Act TIMES NEWS NETWORK New Delhi: Countering the Central Information Commissions (CIC) order on inclusion of political parties under the RTI Act,the governmenton Fridaysaid theorder was flawed and performing a public function was not a testfor a public authority.The governments stout defence came a day after the Union Cabinet cleared amendmentstotheRTIActexcluding political partiesfrom its remit. Justifying the move,law minister Kapil Sibalsaid,Political parties are not public authorities.A political party is a voluntary association of persons.People can join or leave a party.We get elected.We are not appointedlikeofficials. The Cabinet has approved an amendment to Section 2(h) of the Act on the grounds that political parties are not public authorities and,hence,this lawdoes not apply tothem.The second amendment says that parties cannot be brought under the Act regardless of any order passedby a courtor a tribunal. Sibal said political parties were only registered and recognized under the Representation of thePeopleAct,1951. Political parties will not be able to function (if they are brought within RTI).We will not be able to open our minds within our party.While we respecttheCICwe areconcerned that if this were done it will strike atthe rootof the political system, hesaid. The minister maintained that if political parties are brought under the purview of the Act,they will be flooded with applications seeking information about candidate selection,whodissentedor differedon whichdecision andother suchsensitivedetails. Accepting that more needs to be done to bring about transparency in the functioning of political parties,he indicated that it could not be throughRTI. Askedwhy the government had not gone to court against the CIC order and instead decided to amend the law,Sibal saidsincetheCICorder wasoperative,this was a matter of urgency.Therefore,the government is planning to move a bill to overturn the order,he said.We wanted a quick resolution, he added. The government has kept the option of approaching the high court,which is the appellate authority on CICorders,to seek relief in case there is any further delay. Asked about the clause exempting sharing of details of all contributions under Rs 20,000,Sibal said the law is there to deal with any party which may be flouting the rules.Information and broadcasting minister Manish Tewari maintained that small contributions,which may come from people not so welloff and living in rural areas,should alsobe appreciated. However,the government was evasive on why the identity of those making contributions below Rs 20,000 should notbeshared. He maintained that the Election Commission took initiative from time to time to makethe politicalsystem more transparent and accountable. Activists plan to oppose changes C ivil society activists are gearing up for an offensive against the governments proposed legislation to exclude political parties from the ambit of the RTI Act.Besides petitions to parliamentarians,the PM and the President urging them not to support the amendments,activists plan to hold protest demonstrations and even challenge the legislation in court as a last resort.Activists plan to challenge the proposed legislation on the grounds that it is against the constitutional right to freedom of speech.There has been a precedent earlier when the SC struck down an amendment to the Representation of Peoples Act in 2002 and directed candidates to submit their financial details and criminal antecedents before the EC.SC had said the amendment was in violation of the constitutional right to freedom of speech.Association of Democratic Reforms co-founder Prof Jagdeep Chhokar said,We hope RTI Act is not passed and wise counsel prevails on the lawmakers.In the unfortunate event that it is passed by Parliament,it will be challenged in court of law.The exact nature of which will depend on the specific wording of the amendments. TNN
Posted on: Sat, 03 Aug 2013 05:43:45 +0000
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