Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar at the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) meeting at the Congress office in Bengaluru on October 10, 2025.
| Photo Credit: MURALI KUMAR K.
Even as Karnataka has the dubious distinction of having the second highest number of pending appeals and complaints in the country under the Right to Information (RTI) Act 2005, Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar alleged that the NDA government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been consistently eroding and undermining transparency under the RTI Act since 2014.
According to the findings of the ‘Report Card on the Performance of Information Commissions in India, 2024-25’, by Satark Nagarik Sangathan (SNS), Karnataka — with 47,825 backlog appeals and complaints — ranked second in the country after Maharashtra (95,340). The estimated waiting time for disposal of an appeal in Karnataka is one year and nine months, it said.
20th anniversary of RTI Act
On the 20th anniversary of the RTI Act, which came into being on October 12, 2005, during the UPA government led by former prime minister, the late Manmohan Singh, Mr. Shivakumar said, “The main objective of the Act was to empower citizens to access information held by public authorities, making government functioning more transparent and accountable.”
However, the Karnataka State Contractors’ Association has charged the Congress government with “doubling” corruption compared to the previous BJP government led by Basavaraj Bommai, and alleged rampant corruption in some of the departments of the State government.
Mr. Shivakumar said, “RTI has been a lifeline for the most marginalised sections of society, empowering citizens to secure their rightful ration entitlements, timely pensions, unpaid wages, and scholarships. It has ensured that the poorest are not denied the most basic necessities of life, turning information into a tool for justice and dignity.”
‘Increasing executive influence’
In a release, the Deputy Chief Minister accused the Modi government of weakening independence and increasing executive influence. He alleged that “the 2019 amendment diluted the autonomy of information commissions”.
The DCM also criticised the Digital Personal Data Protection Act 2023 and claimed that amended provisions of the Act (Section 8 (1) (J) of RTI) prevented disclosure of information linked to public duties or use of public funds, undermining the transparency principle of RTI.
“By treating critical public data as ‘private’, the amendment opens the door to deny disclosure of voter lists, expenditure records, or other key public interest documents. This directly undermines public audit and scrutiny, the very process through which numerous cases like misuse of MPLAD funds and fake beneficiaries under the MNREGA have come to light,” claimed Mr. Shivakumar.
Restore independence of Information Commissions
The deputy chief minister said, “The Whistle-Blowers Protection Act was passed but never got operationalised.”
Among other demands, he said the Indian National Congress demanded restoration of independence of Information Commissions by undoing the 2019 amendments and ensuring fixed five-year tenure with secure service conditions, and providing strong protection for RTI users and whistle-blowers through implementation of the Act.
Published – October 12, 2025 03:45 pm IST
