When the Right to Information (RTI) Act saw the light of the day in October 2005, it would not have been thought that the law would get a dubious distinction in its journey in the State.
On the one hand, the sunshine law provided the much-needed empowerment to common man in getting access to the otherwise iron-walled bureaucratic system of the country; it led to some cold-blooded killings of activists who blew the lid off corrupt practices, on the other. While the whole country is celebrating the anniversary of the RTI law, the kin of the whistleblowers like lalit Mehta of Chattarpur in Palamau and Niyamat Ansari of latehar, killed for bringing out the truth, are still facing hardship and have been left in the lurch by the callous administration.
"I have not got any assistance from any side including the Government. My two children (seven and nine years old) are in school and I have to manage for the expenses every month. What I got in the name of compensation is an Indira Awas unit at a village of Chattarpur where I could not live and earn my livelihood," says Ashrita Tirki, wife of lalit Mehta.
Mehta (36), an aide of noted economist Jean Dreze, was an RTI activist and headed Vikas Sahyog Kendra (VSK) before being killed on May 14, 2008 on his way home. His organisation was fighting to secure rights over natural resources and sustainable livelihoods for the people of one of the most backward areas of the country, Palamau. His crime was just to conduct social audits of the works done under MGNREGA. The murder after much hue and cry invited CBI investigation that ended without much satisfaction.
"I am not satisfied with the investigation. But I would not like to appeal further. I have not been given any paper related to the judgment by the CBI. The CBI people just verbally told me that at any point of time if I get some sort of information related to the murder of my husband then it should be shared with them. What information would I get now," said the aggrieved wife of Mehta who teaches on contract basis in a Kasturba Gandhi school.
The Special (CBI) Court in March this year had convicted two accused persons Bihari Singh and Kamta Singh and sentenced them life imprisonment with a fine of Rs 10,000 while another accused Raju Singh was killed allegedly by naxals soon after Mehta's murder. Ashrita also sniffs conspiracy behind Raju's murder as he had some "detailed and inside" information about the motive behind the activist's murder and involvement of influential persons into this.
More worryingly, Ashrita also got extortion calls and threats to kidnap her children in the want of money that she was supposed to get in the form of compensation just like Naroosa Bibi, survivor of another whistleblower Niyamat Ansari, who got pressurised to buckle down.
"Earlier I changed my statement before the court due to their threats and hostilities. Those who are in jail are close to the Maoists. Now when I want to give fresh statement I got a notice for that. But when I reached the court they said that the lawyer is not available. How many times I would go there," asks Naroosa depicting her plight and haplessness. The widow is working on contract in DRDA office for
Rs 3,000 that is also paid after a month of pendency and repeated applications and awaiting its first judgment in the case. Niyamat Ansari was killed in the Kope gram panchayat in latehar district in March 2011 within days after he had exposed a scam allegedly perpetrated by the BDO of Manika Block along with corrupt middlemen, illegal contractors and forest officials.
"What I got is just Rs 1 lakh. I had to flee from by village Jherua under threat and forced to stay at latehar. I am also finding hard to manage school fee of my elder son and I have written to Jean Dreze for some help," she said showing resilience to not to succumb under pressure in future even if her fate be similar to that of her late husband.