Anuradha Raman

When journalists seek information under the Right to Information Act (RTI), 2005, there are many surprises in store: the information is often denied or responses to queries are partial because the “information is not available”, or “doesn’t pertain” to the department contacted, or is stated to be under the category of exemptions (any information which could affect the sovereignty and integrity of India, or security, strategic, scientific or economic interests is denied). So, we hit the jackpot rarely. In fact, for hundreds of misses, there is probably one hit.
There are several hurdles to seeking information. Accessibility to files depends not only on the type of information sought but also the department from which it is sought. While the Prime Minister’s Office, the Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of Home Affairs are notorious for stonewalling queries, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and the Ministry of Rural Development are more magnanimous in sharing information.
Two years ago, a colleague and I filed an RTI to understand the BJP government’s publicity blitzkrieg. Apart from the total budget, we sought to know how much had been spent on outdoor publicity; television; small, medium and large newspapers; private radio channels; and the amount allocated for publicity by each Ministry. We were interested in the file notings and wanted to know if taxpayers’ money was well spent. A polite request along with our questions to the Directorate of Advertising and Visual Publicity was directed to the Accounts Wing, with a word of caution: “Information sought in this query is voluminous and spread across large numbers of files. It is requested that you inspect the available records in the office.”
We were excited; this was just the kind of information we were looking for. However, we were in for a shock when we landed at the office and shown the room where the files were kept. The word of caution became clear: there were mountains and mountains of files stacked in the room. Simply daunted by the volume, we requested for more time. Photocopying the files was ruled out; it would be too expensive.
After some consideration we decided to abandon the exercise, promising ourselves that we would sit with the files with more patience next time. But it is not always that RTI stories are inconclusive or caught in a legal quagmire. Four years ago, a senior official suggested I file an RTI to understand the popularity of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Mann Ki Baat aired on All India Radio (AIR). Modi’s monthly broadcast to the nation was an interesting idea, although it was not the first time that a Prime Minister was using AIR. What was different this time was that the fortunes of the public broadcaster had sunk low in the public imagination and it was left to the Prime Minister to salvage its reputation.
I was in for a surprise looking at the data. The files showed that while Mann Ki Baat was a big draw on December 14, 2014, when 5,972 letters were received, the number of letters to AIR’s post box had only been declining since then. Officials were unable to state any reason for this.
RTIs are an excellent tool for journalists to get information, but you need tremendous patience and perseverance to hit that jackpot, as well as hope that officials will cooperate and release the information you want.
- The Hindu