Political parties to come under RTI Scanner - reactions of political parties

New Delhi, June 3 (ANI): Noted RTI activist Subhash Agrawal on Monday welcomed the Central Information Commission's decision to bring all political parties under the ambit of RTI Act, saying it will have far reaching implications and bring transparency and accountability in their functioning.

"Political parties coming under RTI Act is a very important decision by honourable Central Information Commission (CIC) through its full bench and it will have far reaching implications. Now, a citizen can inquire anything, which is not covered under exemption clauses of Section 81 with the political parties and they will have to respond like all other public authorities have to respond and it will bring transparency and accountability in their functioning," said Agrawal.

"There has been much pollution in our political system and this verdict will tend to check that increasing pollution and in turn corruption, scams and scandals. And this verdict will have far reaching implications on other verdicts," he added.

External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid wants a 'practical control' of RTI objectives and not allow them to 'run riot', and theInformation and Broadcasting Minister Manish Tewari has underlined the need to study and deliberate before giving an opinion.

Noting that the purpose of the RTI Act is to make public servants accountable to the world and to ordinary citizens, Khurshid today said it is important to keep a practical control of RTI objectives, as they cannot be allowed to 'run riot'.

"The logic will be gradually tested at various levels, including at the level of courts. And I think that we shouldn't be overtly sensitive to the evolving nature of RTI, but at the same time I think it is important to keep a practical control of RTI objectives because they cannot be allowed to run riot. The purpose is that people who handle public funds, who hold public office must be accountable to the world and to ordinary citizens," said Khurshid.

"There are other areas where you can still acquire ability to reach out and get information, but that has to go through other procedures and process. So, it's an evolving process. I think a balance between public interest of one kind and public interest of another kind must be maintained and this is what Supreme Court has said," he added.

Tewari said the CIC order needs to be properly perused and deliberated, and added that it would be very premature to take a view one way or the other at this point in time.

"The CIC has given an order with regard to political parties, bringing them under the purview of the Right to Information Act. The order obviously needs to be studied. Anything which has judicial connotations or legal connotations, it needs to be properly perused, it needs to be deliberated and only after a process of deliberation and an application of mind if at all there is a view which is formulated then that view is conveyed," said Tewari.

"At this point in time, I think it would be very premature to take a view one-way or the other," he added.

Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar Tuesday welcomed the Central Information Commission (CIC) ruling thatpolitical parties come under the ambit of the Right to Information (RTI) Act, paving the way for a legislation in this regard.

"It is a good thing," Parrikar told reporters here.

The chief minister said that on an average a political party in Goa needs around Rs.40 lakh annually to function and for organisational expenses.

"For a political party, it is okay to take donations, but not (in exchange) for getting work done," Parrikar said.

The CIC Monday ruled that political parties are public authorities and are answerable to public under the RTI act.

There have been different reactions to the CIC order on political parties coming under RTI.

As was expected, the Congress is the first party to raise doubts.

The BJP chief Minister of Goa has welcomed it.

We await the reactions of the other political parties.