A people’s movement started in a village in eastern India converged into a national legislation for right to information. The movement used access and right to information as tool to draw attention to the underpayment of daily wage earners and farmers on government projects, and more generally, to expose corruption in government expenditure. Through prolonged peoples struggle it was able to advocate and lobby with the government to legislate a law regarding right to information in Rajasthan which served as a model for the whole country.
In Devdungari village of Rajasthan, literacy levels were quite low and the region was environmentally degraded and chronically drought-prone which resulted in migration. Then the government began famine relief works, such as the construction of roads and water tanks. These projects provided jobs to the poor for daily wages, besides improving the rural infrastructure. However, in most cases, such initiatives failed to serve the poor, because of the reportedly high levels of corruption and instability in the system. In spite of the existence of the Right to Minimum Wages Act in Rajasthan, the wages paid to workers were often lower than what was shown in the official documents. To tackle this issue of non-transparency and corruption in government offices, Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan (MKSS) was founded in 1990 as a peoples’ movement with the idea to confront these illegal and corrupt practices.
MKSS initially functioned as a partner of the poor in important local struggles, relating mainly to land ownership and wages. It soon had a strong organization of people, mainly from lower socioeconomic groups, such as marginal farmers and landless workers. MKSS soon realized that, in order to assert any of their basic rights, such as the Right for Minimum Wages, people needed access to information and facts about the workings of the government.
Advocacy
Initially, MKSS lobbied government to obtain information such as muster rolls (employment and payment records) and bills and vouchers relating to purchase and transportation of materials. This information was then crosschecked at jansunvai (public hearings) against actual testimonies of workers. The public hearings were incredibly successful in drawing attention to corruption and exposing leakages in the system.
In December 1994, MKSS organized the first jansunvai. It demanded copies of the financial records of the expenditures incurred in the name of panchayats (local governments). There was an immense public response, as hundreds of people participated in the jansunvai. At that time, there was no legal provision to obtain relevant information even in the panchayat. The people from the relevant panchayats carried out a detailed analysis of those records before arranging the public hearings. The first jansunvai marked the beginning of the real struggle for the Right to Information in Rajasthan, spearheaded by MKSS. Several jansunvais were held from December 1994 to April 1995 in the same region, and it caught the attention of the government.
Outcome
On 5 April 1995, the Chief Minister of Rajasthan announced in the Legislative Assembly that his Government would be the first in the country to provide access to information to citizens on all local developmental works. However, no action was taken for months. On 6 April 1996, MKSS started an indefinite Dharna (protest demonstration) in Bewar town of Rajasthan. Their immediate demand was that the State Government pass Executive Orders to provide a limited right to information in relation to local development expenditure. The government responded by issuing Orders only to inspect relevant documents on payment of fees and did not allow taking photocopies of documents.
On 6 May 1996, one month later, the Dharna was extended to Jaipur, the state capital. The Dharna was strongly supported by the people of the State. On 14 May 1996, the Government responded, announcing the establishment of a committee to look into the practical aspects of implementing right to information within two months. In response, MKSS called off the Dharna. Unfortunately, Government interest again lapsed, such that in May 1997 another series of Dharnas commenced, which continued for 52 long days.
In 1998, during the State elections the Opposition Party promised in its election manifesto to enact a law on right to information if it came to power. Following their election, the Party appointed a committee of bureaucrats, headed by Mr P.N. Bhandari, a Secretary of the Rajasthan Government, to draft a bill on the right to information. As the Committee was comprised only bureaucrats, strong objections were raised by civil society organisations, following which the members of MKSS and National Campaign for Peoples Right to Information were invited to assist in drafting the bill. The Rajasthan Right to Information Act 2000 was eventually passed on 11 May 2000. In May 2005, the national Right to Information (RTI) Act 2005 was passed by Parliament.
Challenges in implementation
However, after passage into law, the Office of the Director of Panchayats in Rajasthan did nothing until MKSS went on an indefinite strike in the town of Beawar in April 1996, demanding implementation of the Right to Information. As a result, the panchayats issued an order for implementation, but without mentioning the right to photocopy documents. MKSS continued its strike and demanded that the Right to Information be implemented in the way the chief minister actually promised. Finally, panchayat rules were amended in 1997, and the government implemented the Right to Information with the provision to photocopy documents.
Lessons
Constant efforts and unity among the people were driving forces in the implementation of the Right to Information Act. Other activists and media publicized the campaign for the Right to Information within and outside Rajasthan, which proved instrumental in earning the support of higher authorities and people in other states. Publicity helps a good idea or practice to spread to other regions.