Open Letter to CM Prithviraj Chavan and other concerned officials
22 Jun, 2013
Even after activist G R Vora sent the Open Letter to Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan and other concerned officials on Monday, signatures for the letter just kept pouring in. The letter expresses serious concern with the new RTI Appeal Procedure Rules that Maharashtra Government appears poised to pass. As many as 89 prominent activists and RTI experts from Mumbai and Pune signed this letter (besides large numbers of concerned citizens and RTI users). We have received acknowledged copies from Mantralaya, with acknowledgement stamps of the offices of Chief Minister, Chief Secretary, Principal Secretary (General Administration Department), and Principal Secretary (Law & Judiciary). These letters can be accessed here: http://tinyurl.com/RTI-Maha-Appl-Proced-Rules-Let
The proposed appeal procedure rules can be see here: http://tinyurl.com/proposed-appeal-procedur-rules. The letter categorically states what is wrong with the proposed Appeal Procedure rules, and what anti-people features need to be removed. RTI activist Vijay Kumbhar of Pune first found out that these draft rules were doing the rounds of Mantralaya, and raised an alarm, because in January 2012, Maharashtra’s RTI Rules (not to be confused with RTI Appeal Procedure Rules) were stealthily amended by the state government.
As the signatures have continued to pour in, Vora has sent the same letter a second time on 19th June, with 34 new signatures received. See http://tinyurl.com/RTI-Maha-Appl-Proced-Rul-Letr2
If you who have not expressed your protest by endorsing this letter, please do so now! We will continue to periodically send your endorsements to Mantralaya, as long as you continue send them.
IMPORTANT:
1) Please email your endorsement to grvora1@gmail.com with the subject line, “I endorse letter to CM”
2) Please give the following details for inclusion in this letter: Your Name | Designation e.g. Architect | Brief address (e.g. Borivli East, Mumbai) | Mobile number | Email id.
3) Vora will send this letter to CM Prithviraj Chavan, Chief Secretary Jayant Banthia and principal secretaries of GAD and Law Department, with your signatures.
4) We will also issue it to the media with your signatures.
5) Download the Word-file of this letter (without signatures) from http://tinyurl.com/letr-Maha-CM-Appl-Proc-Rul if you wish to send it on your own letterhead, with or without modifications.
Please forward to your friends and acquaintances in Maharashtra if they are part of the Right To Information movement.
Remember, the RTI movement is a truly nationwide, leaderless, grassroots-level Satyagraha movement, where lakhs of ordinary citizens are asking tough questions to the government and administration. Please support this movement!
Krish