<–2/”>a >Political Parties shall be brought under the act as they are centre to the ecosystem of Democracy. They are the main actor of election process. The points in favour of RTI act are as follows:
Indirect financing in the form of Income tax exemptions. State also provide them indirect financing in the form of airing them on DD channels and Prasar Bharti. Section 80GGB provide deduction to the individual makes the strong case for indirect financing.
As per Section 29C of the Representation of People Act, 1951, all donations of and above Rs. 20,000/- made to political parties are required to be reported to the income tax department. This obligation cast on the political parties points towards their public character.
Under Section 29A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 all political parties must affirm their allegiance to the Constitution of India and such allegiance is made compulsory for the purpose of registration under sub-section (7) of Section 29A. Therefore, political parties so registered must furnish information to the public under the right of information under ARTICLE 19(1) (a) of the Constitution of India, since right of information has been held to be a part of freedom of speech and expression under Article 19(1)(a).
Political parties now have a strong influence over the MP’s and MLA’s with the advent of anti -defection law. Such influence need a public scrutiny which can be materialise by bringing them under RTI.
Many surveys have suggested the amount of unaccounted Money rushing in during Elections. There has to be accountability tool there.
The Law Commission of India in its 170th Report on ‘Reform of the Electoral Laws’ in May 1999 had recommended transparency in the functioning of political parties.,
The Right To Information act (RTI Act) is a law that gives citizens of India the right to access information held by the government. The Act was passed in 2005 and came into force in 2006. The RTI Act has been hailed as a landmark piece of legislation that has helped to promote Transparency and Accountability in the government.
There are a number of arguments in favor of bringing political parties under the RTI Act. First, political parties are public institutions that play a vital role in our democracy. They are responsible for making decisions that affect the lives of all citizens. As such, it is important that they be held accountable to the public. The RTI Act would provide citizens with the tools they need to do this.
Second, political parties receive a significant amount of public funding. In 2019, the total amount of public funding received by political parties in India was over â¹7,000 crore. This money comes from the taxpayers, and it is only right that the public should be able to see how it is being spent. The RTI Act would give citizens the right to access information about political party finances.
Third, political parties are often involved in Corruption. The RTI Act would help to expose corruption by giving citizens the right to access information about political party activities. This would help to improve the transparency and accountability of political parties.
However, there are also a number of arguments against bringing political parties under the RTI Act. First, some argue that political parties are private organizations and that they should not be subject to the same rules as government bodies. However, political parties play a vital role in our democracy, and they should be held to the same standards of transparency and accountability as the government.
Second, some argue that the RTI Act would be too difficult to implement in the case of political parties. Political parties are complex organizations with a lot of data, and it would be difficult to ensure that all of this data was made available to the public. However, the RTI Act already has provisions for dealing with complex organizations, and these provisions could be applied to political parties.
Third, some argue that the RTI Act would be used to harass political parties. This is a valid concern, but it is important to remember that the RTI Act is a tool that can be used for both good and bad. It is up to the government to ensure that the RTI Act is used in a responsible manner.
Overall, I believe that the benefits of bringing political parties under the RTI Act outweigh the costs. The RTI Act would help to promote transparency and accountability in our democracy, and it would give citizens the tools they need to hold political parties to account.
The way forward is to amend the RTI Act to specifically include political parties within its ambit. The amendment should also provide for adequate safeguards to protect the privacy of individuals and to prevent the RTI Act from being used for harassment.
The Right to Information (RTI) Act is a law that gives people the right to access information from the government. It was passed in 2005 and has been hailed as a major step forward in transparency and accountability.
There is no doubt that political parties should be brought under the ambit of the RTI Act. They are public bodies that receive funding from the government and have a significant impact on our lives. We have a right to know how they are spending our money and what decisions they are making.
There are a number of reasons why political parties should be brought under the RTI Act. First, it would help to improve transparency and accountability. Political parties would be forced to be more open about their finances and activities. This would make it easier for voters to hold them to account.
Second, it would help to reduce corruption. The RTI Act would make it more difficult for political parties to engage in corrupt practices. This is because they would be more likely to be caught if they were to try to hide information from the public.
Third, it would help to build trust between the public and political parties. When people have access to information about political parties, they are more likely to trust them. This is because they can see that the parties are being open and transparent.
Of course, there are some who argue that political parties should not be brought under the RTI Act. They say that it would give too much power to the media and that it would make it difficult for political parties to operate effectively.
However, these arguments are not convincing. The media already has a lot of power and the RTI Act would not give them any more. In fact, it would help to reduce the power of the media by making it more difficult for them to sensationalize stories.
As for the argument that the RTI Act would make it difficult for political parties to operate effectively, this is simply not true. Political parties are already required to disclose a lot of information to the public. The RTI Act would simply require them to disclose a little bit more.
In conclusion, there are strong reasons why political parties should be brought under the ambit of the RTI Act. It would help to improve transparency and accountability, reduce corruption, and build trust between the public and political parties.
- The Right to Information (RTI) Act is a law that gives people the right to access information from the government.
- Political parties are not currently covered by the RTI Act.
- Some people believe that political parties should be brought under the ambit of the RTI Act.
- Others believe that political parties should not be brought under the RTI Act.
Here are some multiple choice questions about the RTI Act and political parties:
-
The Right to Information (RTI) Act was passed in:
(a) 2005
(b) 2006
(c) 2007
(d) 2008 -
The RTI Act gives people the right to access information from:
(a) The government
(b) Private companies
(c) Both the government and private companies
(d) None of the above -
Political parties are not currently covered by the RTI Act. True or False?
-
Some people believe that political parties should be brought under the ambit of the RTI Act. Why?
(a) To make them more transparent
(b) To hold them accountable
(c) Both (a) and (b) -
Others believe that political parties should not be brought under the RTI Act. Why?
(a) Because it would be too difficult to implement
(b) Because it would violate their privacy
(c) Both (a) and (b) -
What do you think? Should political parties be brought under the ambit of the RTI Act?
(a) Yes
(b) No
(c) I don’t know