Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Friday accused the Modi government of weakening the Right to Information (RTI) Act and failing to protect truth-seekers and transparency activists.
His comments came in response to the Economic Survey 2025-26, tabled in Parliament a day earlier, which suggested a “re-examination” of the RTI Act.
“The Economic Survey has called for 're-examination' of the RTI Act... After killing MGNREGA, is it RTI's turn to get murdered?” Kharge wrote on X, referring to the replacement of the two-decade-old rural employment scheme with the Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) or VB-G RAM G.
Kharge highlighted that the survey suggested a possible “Ministerial veto” to withhold information and explore shielding public service records, transfers, and staff reports of bureaucrats from public scrutiny.
“In 2019, the Modi Govt hacked away at the RTI Act, seizing control over Information Commissioners’ tenure and pay, converting independent watchdogs into submissive functionaries,” Kharge said.
He added that over 26,000 RTI cases were pending as of 2025.
Kharge also pointed to the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, which he said “gutted the RTI’s public interest clause, weaponising privacy to shield corruption and stonewall scrutiny.”
He further noted, “Until last month (December 2025), the Central Information Commission had been functioning without a Chief Information Commissioner — the seventh time in 11 years this key post was deliberately kept vacant.”
Highlighting the risks faced by transparency activists, Kharge said, “Since 2014, over 100 RTI activists have been murdered, unleashing a climate of terror that punishes truth-seekers and extinguishes dissent. The Whistle Blowers Protection Act, 2014 passed by the Congress-UPA has not been implemented by the BJP, till date.”
Kharge accused the government of delivering “identical fatal blows” to both MGNREGA and the RTI Act, framing it as part of a broader pattern of weakening public accountability.
The Economic Survey, while recommending a re-examination, framed its suggestions as aligning India’s RTI framework with global best practices rather than diluting its intent.
The survey has a quote from former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair to support re-examination of India's RTI (Right to Information) law 2005. Blair had regretted introducing a similar law, saying "You can't run a government without being able to have confidential discussions with people on issues of profound importance."
The survey proposed exempting brainstorming notes and draft papers until decisions were finalised, protecting confidential service records from casual requests, and exploring a narrowly defined ministerial veto subject to parliamentary oversight.
“The Act is best understood not as an end in itself, but as a means to strengthen democracy. The wiser path is to keep it anchored to this original aim: enabling citizens to demand accountability for decisions that affect them, while also ensuring that space for candid deliberation and respect for privacy remain protected. That balance between openness and candour is what will keep the RTI Act true to its purpose,” the survey said.