VISION IAS ARC SUMMARYChapter 1 Right to Information ny, thereby arming citizen iblic scrutiny, how effectively, thus 1.1) What is RTI nent does an © Right to information opens up governmen with a vital tool to inform them about what the making the government more accountable. os © Ima fundamental sense, right to information isa basic necessitY ; ' geo, 8(2, Notwithstanding anything « nisible in accordance with sub Mion, if public interest in dlisclos nt’s records to pul govern! © The Right to Information Act has a non-obstante clause: in the Official Secrets Act, 1923 nor any of the exemptions section (1), a public authority may allow access to informa outweighs the harm to the protected interests” 1 jon Act relates to © 1 The most contentious issue in the implementation of the Right to Information “¢ official sécrets. © Thus OSA would not come in the way of disclosure of information if it is otherwise permissible under the RTI Act. © The Official Secrets Act, 1923 (hereinafter referred to as OSA), enacted during the colonial era, governs all matters of secrecy and confidentiality in governance ~ The word “secret” or the phrase “official secrets” has not been defined in the Act. Therefore, public servants enjoy the discretion to classify anything as “secret”. © This tendency was buttressed by the Civil Service Conduct Rules, 1964 which prohibit commu- nication of an official document to anyone without, authorization: ee © The Official Secrets Act, 1923 is the main statute for fighting espionage activities which vitally affect the national security. “spying”, or entry into a prohibited place etc. en wrongful commiinication harbouring spies unauthorized use of uniforms, falsification of reports etc. interference with the police or military, near a prohibited place. Skene © The Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 was passed for the effective prevention of disrup- tive activities, whether they are in support of secession of a part of the territory of India, or in support of the secession of a part of the territory of India from the Union, or otherwise disclaim, question or disrupt the sovereignty and territorial integrity of India. © The National Security Act (NSA), subsequently enacted in 1980, Maintenance of Internal Security Act and deals only with preventive detention. ntially replaced the earlier das.1.0.1 Recomntendations: © Chairmanshipgof Shri H. D. Shourie on “Right to Information and ‘Transparency, 1997" (hereinafter referred to as the ‘Shourie Committee’) © The Offical Secrets Act, 1923 should be repeated, and substituted by a chapter in the National Security Act © It is the Official Secrets Act that has been regarded in many quarters as being primarily respon- sible for the excessive secrecy in government. © The Shourie Committee recommended a comprehensive amendment of Section 5(1) to make the penal provisions of OSA applicable only to violations affecting national security. _© The National Commission to Review the Working of the Constitution (NCRWC),~ ‘while examining the Right to Information had the following to say ‘+ “In fact, we should have an oath of transparency in place of an oath of secrecy”. 1.2 Exempted Organizations: 3 24, (1) Nothing contained in this Act shall apply to the intelligence and security organisations specified in the Second Schedule, + Border Security Force (BSF), Central Reserve Police force (CRPF), Assam Rifles etc., © The Commission feels that the Armed Forces should be included in the list of exempted organi- zation By including Armed Forces in the IInd Schedule, while national security is safeguarded, disclosure is still mandatory when public interest demands it. 1.3. The Central Civil Services (Conduct) Rules: © The Central Civil Services (Conduct) Rules prohibit unauthorized communication of information © The Central Civil Services (Conduct) Rules were formulated when the RTT Act did not exist © The Act also defines “information” to mean any material in any form, including records, docu- ments, memos, e-mails, opinions, advices, press releases, circulars, orders, log books, contracts, reports, papers, samples, models, data material held in any electronic form and information te- lating to any private body which can be accessed by a public authority under any other Jaw for the time being in force. With the emergence of an era of freedom of information, these Rules would have to be recast'so that dissemination pf information is the rule and holding back inforniation i8 an exception 14 Implementation of the act (M) 9268098159 . PHOTOSTAT © Rights and Obligations Under the Act: 7 etal ‘Subject ‘our «clit 1, Building institutions: uspes) A Stuy idaterials Available ~ 101, Shop No. 2, (©) Information Commissions (x. Mukherjee Nagar, Deli-110009 (b) Information Officers and Appellate Authorities. 2. IL. Information ‘and record-keeping: