After sustained efforts of senior BJD leader and Kendrapada MP Baijayant Panda, other MPs and activists, the Government has finally agreed to refer the RTI (Amendment) Bill, 2013 to the Standing Committee in the lok Sabha.
When the Government introduced a Bill to keep political parties out of the purview of RTI, effectively overturning the order of the Central Information Commission (CIC), Panda personally wrote to the Speaker and spoke to fellow MPs to refrain from hastily affecting changes. In his letter, he had recommended that the Bill be sent to the appropriate Standing Committee for detailed deliberations, followed by a thorough discussion in the House.
Panda thanked his colleagues in Parliament and various citizens and RTI activists who worked with him round the clock to make this happen. He believes that this is a proud day for Indian democracy, when efforts to stifle transparency in our politics succumbed to public pressure.