The country is witnessing an “aggressive assault” on laws that are regarded as the fundamental rights of the people, social activist Aruna Roy has said.
She was addressing a meeting organised here on Tuesday by the National Campaign for People’s Right to Information to take stock of the implementation of the Right to Information Act in the State.
Landmark legislations such as the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee (MGNREGS) Act, Land Acquisition Act and the Food Security Act brought in after sustained campaign are either being diluted or put on the backburner by the Union government, she said
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Though there are no direct signs of the RTI Act being scuttled, there are enough indications which clearly show the intent of the BJP-led government.
A myth is being propagated that decision making became slow, especially during the second tenure of the United Progressive Alliance government, after the Act came into existence, she said.
The country is passing through a crucial period as decisions are taken arbitrarily without holding proper consultation, Ms. Roy said.
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She cited the Centre’s move to replace the Planning Commission with NITI Aayog. There could be political and economic compulsions for disbanding the Commission that gave enough space for dialogue, she said.
There is a concerted move to suppress dissenting voices, she said citing the Union Home Ministry’s action against Greenpeace campaigner Priya Pillai.
Ms. Roy also criticised the Centre for not enforcing the Whistleblower Protection Act.
She stressed the need to appoint persons with “integrity, just and efficient” as State Information Commissioners. “The post should not become another place for showing favouritism and nepotism,” she said.