Shakeel-ur-Rehman hopes that the Right to Information (RTI) Act would bring good governance to the State
(Syed Shakeel-ul-Rehman, 32, was born in Qazipora, Tangmarg. He did his schooling at the Government Middle School in Katipora and at the Government Higher Secondary School in Chandilora, both in the Tangmarg Tehsil. He graduated in Social Work from the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU), being the first Kashmiri student to graduate with that major. He subsequently did his post graduate diploma in Journalism and Mass Communication from the same University. He has taken specialized courses in computer hardware and software technology. He worked as a columnist and correspondent for the Greater Kashmir daily newspaper until 2005 and is currently the Opinion Editor of the Kashmir Images daily newspaper. He also anchors Doordharshan Kendra Srinagar’s live phone-in show called, “Hello DD” since April 2005. Mr. Shakeel-ur-Rehman holds the distinction of having interviewed prominent personalities in all major fields and walks of life, probably more than any other Kashmiri journalist.)
Kashmir’s Malaise
Like the rest of the world, in Kashmir also there is an emphasis on good governance these days. One of the important characteristics of good governance is open governance. An open government is one which does not hide anything from the governed.
Open government in fact strengthens the link between the state and the citizens. For an open system of government people’s participation is a must. Without it no government can be described as ‘open’. People’s participation can be effective and meaningful only when they are allowed access to information about the government’s day to day activities affecting the important aspects of public life.
Participation in government by the people is regarded as an important aspect of democracy and people cannot participate unless they have information as to what the government is doing and how it is doing. A democratic state, being answerable to the people, the people are entitled to know what policies and programmes are being followed by the government. Another important factor justifying the openness in government activities is that almost all democratic countries adopt the concept of welfare state where the state undertakes a large number of activities that affect the social and economic interests and personal life of the individual.
It is extremely important, therefore, that these powers are exercised for public good and not for the good of those who are in power. It is a common saying that power tends to corrupt and absolute power tends to corrupt absolutely. Hence there is an inherent danger that the extensive powers vested in the executive may be used by office holders not for the public good but for their own selfish goal. And this is what is happening in Kashmir. The system has failed to such an extent that people hardly trust those in power. This is what has made it important that the people in this sensitive state should have the right to access to as much information about governmental operations as possible.
In the last few decades, freedom of information has been recognized as an internationally protected human right and societies across the world are moving away from opaque and secretive administrative systems to open and transparent one’s. Recognising the importance of freedom of information at individual, organizational, national and international levels, even the United Nations Organization has declared ‘freedom of information’ as a fundamental human right. Although the rest of the world including India has embraced the concept, the Jammu and Kashmir state, which enjoys the dubious distinction of being the second most corrupt state in the whole of India after the notorious Bihar, seems to be out of sync with this progressive concept.
The fact that it has failed to set up an independent Information Commission despite passing its own Right to Information Act earlier this year, highlights this starkly. It is because of this that in Kashmir despite the RTI Act and its provisions the problems regarding seeking information still remain the same. In order to make governance meaningful and effective the state administration will have to change its mindset. That is the only way to end Kashmir’s malaise.