The DPDP Act's Assault on the RTI: A Threat to Transparency and Accountability
UPSC Relevance
Prelims: Indian Polity and Governance (Fundamental Rights - Art 19(1)(a), Art 21; Key Legislations - RTI Act 2005, DPDP Act; Judiciary - Puttaswamy case).
Mains:
General Studies Paper 2 (Polity & Governance): Important aspects of governance, transparency and accountability, e-governance applications; Role of civil services in a democracy; Statutory, regulatory and various quasi-judicial bodies.
General Studies Paper 4 (Ethics): Probity in Governance; Accountability and transparency.
Key Highlights from the News
The article strongly argues that the recently passed Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act, by amending Section 8(1)(j) of the Right to Information (RTI) Act, weakens the spirit of the RTI Act.
Key Changes:
The ambiguous definition of "Personal information" empowers officials to deny almost all information under this pretext.
The crucial safeguard in the RTI Act, the proviso stating "information which cannot be denied to Parliament shall not be denied to any person," has been completely removed through the amendment.
The strong penalties in the DPDP Act will deter Public Information Officers (PIOs) from disclosing information, creating a chilling effect where information is denied rather than provided.
This amendment will facilitate corruption and erode the transparency and accountability of government systems.
The article calls for strong public opinion against this weakening of the Right to Information Act.
COMMENTS