Thursday, September 5, 2013

Lakhs of Indians have stood against the amendment to the RTI Act.

Dear Naresh -

I am overwhelmed. The last few days have proven that we really value our Right to Information.Lakhs of Indians have stood against the amendment to the RTI Act. Ordinary people, including you and me, have signed petitions, met their MPs, called the Lok Sabha Speaker, and talked about the issue on social media.

However, the Parliament will conclude in 2 more days and the RTI might get dilutedwithin this time. Let us, together, give this one more push before the session ends.

Naresh, here is what you can do.

1) Email the Speaker of the Lok Sabha, Smt. Meira Kumar. She has the power to refer this Bill to a standing committee and ensure that the public is consulted. Below is a sample email you can send her (speakerloksabha@sansad.nic.in) with a copy to the Prime Minister (manmohan@sansad.nic.in).

Dear Madam,

I am writing this email to express my anguish over the proposed amendment to the RTI Act. The RTI Act has been a powerful tool for fighting corruption and I feel it is undemocratic to amend it without hearing the concerns of citizens. I therefore request you to refer this bill to a Standing Committee and thus enable more public discussion on this issue.

Thank you.

2) Email, SMS or Tweet your Member of Parliament and tell them that as a voter you are against this amendment. Below is a sample SMS and Tweet. Here is a list of their Twitter accounts.

SMS: We strongly feel that the RTI Amendment Bill is being brought in an arbitrary and hasty manner. We appeal to you to demand that the Bill be sent to the Standing Committee to enable public consultation.

Tweet: #SaveRTI. Amendment to RTI Act needs public consultation. Demand the Bill be sent to Standing Committee.