Don't catch 'em young
PUJA AWASTHI | December 3, 2010 16:36 The adage catch them young
apparently does not apply to Uttar Pradesh's Information Commission
which has decreed that a nine year old is too small to get any
information under the much feted Right to Information Act.
The case of of Aishwarya Sharma, a student of the City Montessori
School whose petition to the chief minister on how a garbage dump
could be allowed in front of a school as it was a potential risk
hazard, The CM's office in turn had pointed out that it had received
no such letter from the 9 year old prompting her to file another RTI
application seeking to know how many such letters went missing
regularly from the CM's office. While no response was received from
the CM's office, the municipal authorities quietly swept away the
garbage dump. The case was much flashed in the local and national
media as an example of how transparent the Act had made governance.
It now appears that Aishwarya was not even eligible to get such
information from the state's information Commission. The state's CIC
said that the applicant was prima facie a minor and did not come under
the definition of Major under the Indian Majority Act to seek
information.
Interestingly the RTI Act itself makes no such distinction and only
calls for an Indian citizen who can pay the Rs 10 requisite fee to get
information from a government department.
So exactly how old should Aishwarya be before she seeks information?
Old enough to vote? Old enough to marry? Old enough to take the civil
services exam? Or old enough to fight an election?
We mollycoddle our children denying them sex education under the
pretext that it will pollute their young minds. Frown on essentially
marketing gimmicks such as Valentine's Day, worse still in rural India
we pronounce death sentences for them if they dare marry outside the
community.
The moot question remains how young is too young? And under the garb
of age how long will our children be denied the opportunity to express
themselves?
Meanwhile the feisty Aishwarya, daughter to one of RTI's most vocal
Lucknow based activists Urvashi Sharma is not giving up. After she
receives a copy of the SIC's order that she has no locus standi to
seek information, she will approach the High Court.
Go girl, go.
--
Urvashi Sharma
RTI Helpmail( Web Based )
aishwaryaj2010@gmail.com
Mobile Rti Helpline
8081898081 ( 8 A.M. to 10 P.M. )
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