Sir — India can rightly be proud of its pioneering role in providing its citizens the right to information, considering that even our neighbouring countries are gradually following the Indian model by introducing similar legislation in their countries.
Most of these countries have framed their transparency law by taking India’s Right to Information Act as the basic role model. However it is a matter of regret that our own lawmakers are now trying to dilute the provisions of this wonderful Act. Reportedly, Pakistan has cleared the deck for its ‘Freedom of Information law’ which aims to provide information within 20 days. It also allows for even more transparency by bringing the security agencies under its ambit.
It would, of course, be interesting to observe the success of ‘Freedom of Information law’ in a country like Pakistan where the military administration has a history of dominating over the political rulers.