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New Delhi: Living
overseas for education, employment or other reasons, Indians
abroad find it difficult to use the Right to Information (RTI) Act
due to the cumbersome fee-payment process.
"Even after five years of the RTI Act, Indian citizens living
abroad are unable to use it effectively because of a cumbersome
fee payment system. The Indian government has not framed any rules
or procedures for the payment of RTI fee in foreign currency from
abroad," Commodore Lokesh Batra, an RTI applicant, said.
Batra, a Noida resident, had already raised the issue with the
Indian mission in Washington citing problems faced by Indians
living abroad in filing RTI applications while he was staying in
the US.
Many Indians living abroad say they have the right to know their
roles, rights, duties, responsibilities and privileges.
When IANS contacted a few Indian citizens living abroad, they said
the amendment to the RTI rules promulgated by the Department of
Personnel Training (DoPT) Dec 10, 2010, are silent on the process
of fee payment while filing RTI pleas from outside India's
borders.
According to Batra, all Indian citizens living abroad, including
those who are residing abroad during short visits, citizens who
stay abroad for education and job purposes and even officials
posted in Indian missions or on deputation to international
bodies, face the same problem while filing RTI applications there.
"It is shameful that the Indian government is continuously denying
our right to information," Somu Kumar, a volunteer of the
Anti-Corruption Team (ACT) of the non-profit group Association for
India's Development (AID), told IANS on phone from Washington D.C.
"We, Indians living oversees for education and employment, pay
taxes in India. We feel as Indian taxpayers we have equal right to
access information from the Indian government," he added.
Kumar said it is the responsibility of the chief information
commissioner and the external affairs and overseas Indian affairs
ministries (MEA and MOIA) to implement an effective mechanism to
file RTI applications in India.
"If there is enough will among the powers that be, this can be
implemented in no time," he said.
Said Vishal Kudchadkar, from Los Angeles, a volunteer of US-based
AID: "I seek information via RTI as I'm associated with social and
environmental development projects. I seek information related to
dams on the Ganga and the Bhopal gas tragedy."
"As there is no mode of payment of fees in dollars, it is
difficult for me to use the RTI Act," he added.
However, though difficult, Kudchadkar has found an alternative way
to overcome this problem - "contacting friends in India and asking
them to pay the fee on my behalf while submitting applications. I
did the same when I wanted some information on Salwa Judum in
Chhattisgarh".
But, he said, this method is not only cumbersome but also delays
the filing of the application. Kudchadkar demanded that the
government come up with specific procedures to help Indians abroad
pay fees in foreign currencies.
As in the case of Beena Rag from Texas, who had filed an RTI query
on the Nandigram Special Economic Zone (SEZ), many queries filed
abroad - at Indian high commissions and embassies - via the RTI
Act are rejected and the applicants are advised to address their
applications directly to the public authorities in India.
AID has also appealed to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to
intervene in the matter since the issue involves multiple agencies
like the Central Information Commission, MEA, MOIA and DoPT.
In an online signature campaign by AID, as many as 316 signatures
have been made by Indian citizens abroad till date.
In the campaign, K.R.S. Vasan from Saudi Arabia posted, "Dear
prime minister, we fervently hope that you will enable the right
of Indians residing abroad to exercise their rights under the RTI
Act, by directing the missions and designated agencies to accept
fees in local currency and act as the nodal agency in respect of
such applications."
Joseph Mathew Austin, Texas, posted, "I sincerely believe that the
RTI services should be accessible for Indian citizens living
abroad and Indian missions can effectively provide an
administrative role."
CIC chief Satyananda Mishra expressed his willingness to improve
the process and said the Commission was looking into the problems
faced by Indians living abroad while seeking information via the
RTI Act.
"I totally agree with Indians abroad. They have every right to
seek information via RTI. It is an issue that needs to be
addressed and there will be a solution soon."
(Prathiba Raju can be contacted at prathiba.r@ians.in)
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