Haryana Congress slams BJP for ‘diluting’ RTI, BJP calls charge baseless

HPCC chief Rao Narendra Singh said the BJP diluted the RTI law for political gain, while BJP leaders dismissed the charge, citing stronger digital transparency.

At a Gurugram event, Rao Narendra Singh accused the Centre of crippling RTI institutions; BJP leaders said digital tools have made governance more open. (HT Photo)

Haryana Pradesh Congress Committee (HPCC) president Rao Narendra Singh on Sunday accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government of systematically weakening the Right to Information (RTI) Act, calling it a “direct attack on democracy and transparency”. Speaking at a press conference in Gurugram to mark the 20th anniversary of the RTI Act’s implementation, Rao alleged that the “RTI law, one of the most powerful tools for citizens, had been diluted for political convenience.” 

“The RTI Act, implemented under the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government in 2005, empowered ordinary citizens to seek information from any government department,” Rao said. “However, after 2014, the BJP government amended it to serve its interests and weaken its core purpose.” 

Rao said that during the UPA regime, several landmark pieces of legislation were enacted to strengthen citizens’ rights, including the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (2005), the Forest Rights Act (2006), the Right to Education Act (2009), the Land Acquisition and Rehabilitation Act (2013), and the National Food Security Act. “But since the BJP came to power, these laws have been systematically diluted. New amendments were introduced that limited people’s access to information,” he added. 

Expressing concern over the implementation of RTI, Rao said the Central Information Commission (CIC) currently has only two active commissioners out of 11 sanctioned posts, while the Chief Information Commissioner’s post has remained vacant since September 2025. “As of June 2024, over four lakh RTI appeals and complaints were pending in 29 information commissions across the country—double the number from 2019,” he said. 

Pankaj Dawar, urban district president of the Congress, also condemned attacks on RTI activists. “Citing the murder of Shehla Masood, an activist who exposed illegal mining. Many RTI workers have faced violence or intimidation for uncovering corruption. Their safety must be ensured,” he said. 

Calling RTI the “constitutional empowerment of the common citizen”, Rao demanded the withdrawal of the 2019 amendment that revoked the fixed tenure of information commissioners and sought the immediate filling of all vacancies in central and state commissions. “Journalists, academics, and activists should also be included in these bodies to ensure independent oversight,” he said. 

“The BJP government weakened the RTI to evade accountability, but the Congress will restore it as a powerful weapon in the hands of the people,” said Vardhan Yadav, Congress district president (rural).

Responding to the allegations, Arvind Saini, the state media in charge of the BJP, dismissed the claims as “politically motivated.” “The Modi government has only strengthened transparency and accountability through digital governance. The RTI framework continues to function effectively, and any claim that it has been weakened is baseless,” he said. 

“The BJP government has not weakened the RTI Act; we have strengthened transparency through digitisation and direct public access to information,” said Rao Narbir Singh, Haryana industries and commerce minister. “From online portals to real-time grievance redressal systems, our focus has been to make governance more accountable, not less. It is the Congress that is attempting to politicise an issue it failed to uphold with integrity during its own tenure.”