তথ্য অধিকার আইন

Saturday, June 15, 2024

Shamsul Bari and Ruhi Naz

There is conflicting feedback from our readers on the operation of the Right to Information (RTI) Act in the country. Some believe that in the existing political climate, there is little scope for the success of a law that seeks to empower citizens to probe into the government’s inner workings. Others consider that by building incremental gains achieved through developing a close working relationship between government officials and citizens based on low-level RTI interventions, a culture of openness can be cultivated where deeper probes may be possible.

As a result, the more knowledgeable and upper echelons of society with a better understanding of how the government works have largely avoided the law. In contrast, those at the grassroots level with little knowledge about the intricacies of governance, but more interested in ensuring that the government fulfils its responsibilities to the people, have found the law useful and convenient. Read more

The Daily Star, Thursday, May 30, 2024

Shamsul Bari and Ruhi Naz

Bangladesh’s adoption of the Right to Information (RTI) Act in 2009 was a transformative move,empowering its citizens to access information available to most public authorities on mattersrelated to their work. It was a significant step towards making public authorities more transparentand accountable to the people. The Information Commission (IC) was constituted in 2009 toensure the law’s effective implementation. The commission is mandated to publish an annual report, giving a detailed account of its work and the performance of the demand side (citizens seeking information) and the supply side (public authorities who supply them).

The recent release of the 2023 Annual Report by the Information Commission has sparked a
significant surge in interest, with national dailies, civil society and NGOs all actively discussing its findings. This heightened attention is a promising indication, reflecting a growing recognition of the law’s potential benefits. However, it also underscores the crucial role of each stakeholder in fully harnessing this potential. Each of us, as stakeholders, plays a vital part in this journey towards transparency and accountability, and our active engagement is key to its success. Read more

The Daily Star, Thursday, May 16, 2024

Shamsul Bari and Ruhi Naz

India’s right to information (RTI) regime has been going through a rough patch since the Bhartiya Janata party (BJP) government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi took office in May 2014. RTI activists and informed citizens are concerned that the government is weakening the power of the law. One illustration of this is the delay in nominating information commissioners, leading to a huge backlog of requests. In August last year, opposition Indian National Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge accused the government of “killing the RTI Act bit by bit,” adding that it is “not just an attack on the constitutional right, but another step in the conspiracy to end democracy.”

Against this backdrop, the unanimous decision on February 15, 2024 of a five-judge Constitution Bench of the Indian Supreme Court, led by its chief justice, to strike down the now infamous Electoral Bonds Scheme of 2018 and order the disclosure of a huge amount of sensitive information hitherto concealed from citizens came as a shot in the arm of India’s RTI Act, 2005. In Bangladesh, there is much to learn about the enormous potential of our own RTI Act, 2009 from the Indian experience. Read more

The Daily Star, Tuesday, April 16, 2024

Shamsul Bari and Ruhi Naz

The arrest and imprisonment of a journalist last month in Sherpur District over his request under the Right to Information (RTI) Act, 2009 has rattled concerned citizens. According to media reports, on March 5, Shafiuzzaman Rana, a correspondent for Bangla daily Desh Rupantor went to the office of the Nokla UNO (Upazila Executive Officer) to submit an RTI application about the purchase of computers and laptops under a government project. Rana asked for a receipt of the application, but the office assistant asked him to wait till the arrival of the UNO, who was at a meeting. This apparently led to heated discussions between the two, upon which Rana called the deputy commissioner of the district directly to complain.

Hearing the commotion, the UNO returned to her office and a more serious altercation broke out between the two sides. Nokla police were called in and Rana was quickly arrested for misbehaviour with public officials. With equal alacrity, a mobile court conducted by the assistant commissioner (land) sentenced Rana to six months’ imprisonment and ordered the seizure of his two mobile phones. He was charged with “trespassing into a government office, causing commotion, obstructing government work, creating a disorderly situation, and misconduct.” Read more