Data Protection Bill poses severe restrictions to RTI Act, NCPRI cautions govt

Subject : Polity

Section: Legislation in news

Concept :

An upcoming amendment to the Right to Information Act, 2005 is set to remove the legal basis allowing government agencies to share personal information in public interest, a move that activists have warned would dilute the transparency law.
In the version of the Digital Personal Data Protection Bill cleared for introduction in Parliament, a copy of which was reviewed by The Hindu, there exists a section that would eliminate the majority of ection 8(1) (j) of the RTI Act, 2005

Section 8(1) (j) of the RTI Act, 2005

Section 8 (1) mentions exemptions against furnishing information under RTI Act.
Section 8(1) (j) of the RTI Act, 2005 encapsulates that information which relates to personal information the disclosure of which has no relationship to any public activity or interest, or which would cause unwarranted invasion of the privacy of the individual, unless the CPIO or SPIO or the Appellate Authority is satisfied that the larger public interest justifies the disclosure of such information should be exempted from disclosure.
Further, the information which cannot be denied to the Parliament or the State Legislature shall not be denied to any person.
So, Section 8(1)(j) of the Act allows officials to refuse access to information if it intrudes on the privacy of an individual, but permits disclosure of information if there is an overriding public interest law.

About NCPRI

The National Campaign for People’s Right to Information (NCPRI) was founded in 1996. Its founding members included social activists, journalists, lawyers, professionals, retired civil servants and academics.
One of its primary objectives was to campaign for a national law facilitating the exercise of the fundamental right to information.
Since the passage of the law, the campaign has been working towards effective implementation of the Act and realisation of peoples’ right to information.