RTI activists fighting fear, fiercely

My heart goes out to Bhikhubhai whose relentless efforts have finally paid-off. Unlike Haren Pandya’s father, who died with his mission of finding justice for his slain son incomplete, Bhikhubhai’s search for justice for his slain RTI activist son Amit Jethava has resulted in the arrest of a BJP MLA. For nearly five years, Bhikhubhai went from forum to forum, village to village, seeking clues for his quest in bringing the killers to book, in spite of his failing health.

Gujarat seems to be leading as far as threats and murders of RTI activists are concerned. Two young men, Jayesh Barot and Yogesh Shekhar who protested against the illegal building activity in Halol and Kalol regions were murdered. The incident took place after they filed an RTI application and yet no one has been caught or punished. Similarly, Vasram Dodiya was murdered before the information from Torrent Power in Surat could reach him, making his RTI null and void.

Nadeem Saiyad, a Juhapura resident, and a witness to the 2002 genocide lost his life unceremoniously. He was fighting against the builders involved in illegal construction in the Naroda Patiya area. The day before his broad daylight murder, he had stopped the police from arresting innocent youngsters accused of cow slaughter, and directed them to the real culprits. He was brutally murdered the next morning, while buying a newspaper next to his house. A week before he was murdered, Saiyad stopped my car and told me: “They are after me. I can feel it. If I am killed, know that these lobbies have done it.”

In Kutch, Jabbardan Gadhvi, another activist, received several threats for the RTIs he filed. He repeatedly asked the police to intervene and protect him but in vain. With no help from the authorities, he set himself ablaze outside the Mamlatdar’s office.

Recently, a Mumbai-based activist, fighting illegal land-possession was kidnapped and taken to Surat where he was beaten unconscious. He is still recovering in the hospital.

Additionally, activists like Ketan Shah, Bhagubhai Devani, Bhanubhai Adodar, Nathabhai Sukhadia and Maheshbhai from Mahua have had threats to their lives and escaped with major injuries.

Most, if not all, cases of attacks on RTI activists remain unsolved, while many are neglected totally.

And yet, the most powerful tool that a citizen in a democracy has that makes the government accountable for its actions, is the Right to Information Act. In one single law, the citizen has been given the right to ask and to get answers. It is apparent, therefore, that those in power be it the departments or functionaries who have been looting our treasury and us citizens are hell bent on stopping their deeds from being uncovered, and their golden goose killed. It’s unbelievable that any honest officer, department or ministry would otherwise be unwilling to be transparent.

Only those with dirt to hide become opaque.

With these slew of killings and attacks; the dissolution of the Gujarat act and the Lokayukta’s position by the government’s recent moves, it should become obvious to the most innocent observer that government is trying hard to hide reality behind the state’s huge indebtedness and spending, and not let citizens know about it.

But are the RTI activists scared of these gunda tactics? Far from it. In fact, they have come together to form the Gujarat RTI Activists’ Association to strengthen their force, and give courage and protection to each other. I was thrilled to see a full house of empowered activists; people from all walks of life urban and rural from every part of Gujarat, educated and not alike participating in a meeting of the association held on October 19 at the Gandhinagar Town Hall.

These are courageous people involved in making the society transparent and answerable. Let us support them and their activities wholeheartedly.

The writer is a noted danseuse and social  activist