RIP RTI? The dark clouds over India’s ‘sunshine law’

Several parliamentarians and civil society activists have raised concerns that the Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDP) 2023 — passed by Parliament this week — may be the final nail in the coffin for the Right To Information (RTI) Act. When it came into force in 2005, it was hailed as a ‘sunshine law’ that would make governments transparent and accountable. But even before the data Act, RTI had suffered a thousand cuts.

Just ask Reena (uses only one name), a resident of Delhi’s Dakshinpuri resettlement colony and a divorcee who makes ends meet by cooking in people’s homes. Struggling with rising living expenses as a single mother, she tried to apply for scheduled caste certificates for her three children in 2012 in order to access government schemes and much-needed financial aid. After several months of petitions and pleadings, she hit a wall. The Delhi government required proof of her ex-husband’s SC status to move ahead.