On Tuesday, representatives from the Jammu and Kashmir Right to Information Movement paid a visit to the Chief Information Commissioner YK Sinha in Srinagar. During their meeting, they updated Sinha on the status of the RTI Act 2005’s implementation in J-K.
Because there has been a significant drop in the number of RTI petitions submitted over the last several years, the delegation, which was headed by the chairman of the RTI Movement Dr. Raja Muzaffar Bhat, requested the CIC to guarantee that RTI is properly implemented.
A memorandum was handed in by members of the RTI Movement to the Chief Information Commissioner of Jammu and Kashmir, requesting his involvement on concerns relating to the implementation of RTI in that region.
“We urged upon the CIC Y K Sinha for conducting massive RTI awareness by involving local NGO’s and theatre groups so that they reach out to the people in the remotest areas of J-K,” Bhat added.
Bhat said that after the repeal of Article 370, more than 800 laws from the federal government were extended to Jammu and Kashmir, yet there is very little information about these laws.
“RTI Act 2005 has been in operation in J&K for almost four years now; however, the designated PIO’s and appellate authorities are not properly trained to implement and enforce this law. As a direct consequence of this, there has been a significant reduction in the number of RTI applications filed.” Bhat said that “We requested the CIC to address these lacunas, and the CIC gave us their full assurance that they would take up this issue with Government.”
The delegation also included senior members of the Jammu and Kashmir Right to Information Movement such as Farooq Kuthoo, Dr. Mushtaq Khan, Shafiq Mir, and Rayees Wathori, amongst others.
