I fully agree on the comments made by Bunch. Bhaskar
On 3/13/09, raja bunch <[email protected]> wrote: > > Please do not be selfish, Shailesh belongs to the entire RTI community > and people who are for justice. > > Bunch > > --- On Fri, 13/3/09, Bhaskar Prabhu > <[email protected]<mahitiadhikarmanch%40gmail.com>> > wrote: > > From: Bhaskar Prabhu > <[email protected]<mahitiadhikarmanch%40gmail.com> > > > Subject: Re: [rti_india] My Shailesh Gandhi versus CIC Shailesh Gandhi > To: [email protected] <rti_india%40yahoogroups.com> > Date: Friday, 13 March, 2009, 3:57 PM > > There are some msgs which I generally donot go about it and need to neglet > is the word i use. > Thanks for forwarding but it is too long to read, so delated, any body > wants > to enhance knowledge of person, who has written and on whom it is > written can do so. I know capabilities of both. > Bhaskar > > On 3/13/09, LESLIE ALMEIDA <[email protected] <lesals2000%40yahoo.com>> > wrote: > > > > > > My Shailesh Gandhi versus CIC Shailesh GandhiThursday, March 12, 2009 > 2:33 > > AM > > > > BEWARE IMPOSTER ON THE RPOWL > > > > From: This sender is DomainKeys verified "Krishnaraj Rao" > > > > <[email protected] > > <thebravepedestrian%40gmail.com><thebravepedestrian% > 40gmail.com>>View > > contact details To: "krish" > > <[email protected] <sahasipadyatri%40gmail.com> <sahasipadyatri% > 40gmail.com>> > > > > Last Saturday, I witnessed what is nowadays a rare sight: CIC Shailesh > > Gandhi taking up cudgels against dishonesty. For a few moments, I thought > it > > was my Shailesh Gandhi. > > > > Speaking at an Indian Merchants Chamber (IMC) meeting on Corporate > > Governance in Mumbai, Shaileshbhai publicly named a dozen fat-cats > looting > > the public exchequer, including Tata Finance, Mukesh Ambani, Shapoorji > > Pallonji, Shah Rukh Khan and Simplex Mills. When his fellow-speakers > tried > > to muddy the waters with management jargon, Shaileshbhai wasted no time > with > > political correctness. There is more dishonesty in the corporate sector > > than our friends would have us believe, he said bluntly. (Download photo > > from this link: http://www.box.net/shared/k70rry88bp ) > > > > Here was a glimpse of the Shailesh Gandhi I knew and loved: > introspective, > > brutally frank, crystal clear, with no ambiguity. He knew where the lines > > were drawn, and repelled attempts to make those lines fuzzy. This > Shailesh > > Gandhi was my mentor. I cherish the things that I -- along with many > other > > activists -- learned from him. > > > > I keep trying to speak to my mentor, but the person who comes up nowadays > > is someone else. This person, known as CIC Shailesh Gandhi, speaks in > favour > > of ambiguity. With master-strokes of logic, he effortlessly fudges the > lines > > that my mentor once struggled to define razor-sharp. This imposter has > many > > of the qualities of head and heart that my mentor Shailesh Gandhi > possessed; > > he speaks with great conviction and authority... but he speaks lies. > > > > Throughout the IMC meeting, Shaileshbhai was at pains to make one point: > > the private sector, which habitually points fingers at government and the > > public sector, is at least as corrupt if not more. He urged corporates to > > make suo moto disclosures of its contracts and MOUs with government > bodies > > as part of their moral obligation to be transparent before the public. > It > > is a human tendency for every man to wish that the wives of other men > wear > > transparent clothes, he quipped. Before we demand transparency from > > others, we should ourselves be transparent. > > > > MISDIRECTING PUBLIC ANGER > > > > A persuasive argument -- but it misdirects public anger away from the > > fountainhead of corruption, the administration. You see, business > > enterprises are not there to serve the nation; any fool will tell you > that > > the sole reason for every business to exist (even self-righteous ones > like > > Tata enterprises) is to make greater profits. When businesses bend the > laws > > to earn greater profits, we are angry, but we understand that it is > natural. > > > > However, we citizens feel betrayed when government and administration > fudge > > the laws. It is the same sense of betrayal that some unfortunate little > > girls feel when they wake up to find daddys hand sliding between their > > thighs. At first, we become insecure, and later, when we get used to it, > > this incest makes us cynical, and sets off a vicious cycle of denial and > > corruption. When the fence eats the crops that it was meant to protect, > > hopelessness spreads everywhere. > > > > We, the People, elect the legislature specifically to legislate i.e. > make > > laws, draw the lines, define the rules of the game. The government is > > expressly formed to govern in the best interest of We, the People, and > not > > to pander to vested interests. Various organs of administration are > formed > > under various laws expressly to implement the laws ie. to ensure that > nobody > > crosses the lines drawn by the legislature. > > > > In the case of the Right to Information Act. Information Commissioners > are > > expressly appointed to IMPLEMENT & ENFORCE the Act and not to remove > its > > teeth and nails. My mentor Shailesh Gandhi painstakingly taught me the > Act > > in his living room in mid 2008, when I was just a clueless agitator > asking > > for better roads for pedestrians. He pointed out to me that the citizen > who > > questioned administrative acts of omission or commission was fighting an > > uphill battle. > > > > WHAT I LEARNED FROM THE MASTER > > > > This battle is not fought on the ground, it is fought in the minds of > > people, Shaileshbhai said. To hold the government accountable, you need > > information. Information is power, and that is why it is restricted, > > delayed, denied and diluted. My mentor pointed out that the Act > recognized > > that each day was precious as a citizen lacked the physical and financial > > strength to sustain this unequal battle for long. And that was why the > penal > > provisions specified Rs 250 penalty for each day of delay. That was why > the > > onus was put on the Public Information Officer (PIO) to prove his > innocence > > -- to prove that he had acted strictly according to the RTI Act. Those > who > > had drafted the Act anticipated the various methods of delay, denial and > > misinformation used to wear out the citizen trying to fight against the > > system and hold it accountable to public scrutiny. > > > > My mentor taught me that acting as watchdogs, we citizens must ensure > that > > the administrations actions closely conform to norms, rules and > > regulations. He taught me that the correct use of RTI was to make the > public > > authority disclose the rules and norms applicable, and then use them to > > measure its actual performance. (As an example of this approach, you may > > read an RTI application format formulated by Shaileshbhai. Download from > > this link: http://www.box.net/shared/rjpnkbyklz . Please notice the > stress > > on various penalties prescribed by BMC for sloppy roadwork.) > > > > To me, this was the Gospel revealed, and I held to it close to my heart. > > > > And this is the reason that I am raging against this imposter who is > doing > > much to uphold the myth that those with law-enforcers have mysterious and > > undefined discretionary powers that allow them to override the letter > and > > spirit of the law. > > > > THE FACE OF THE IMPOSTER > > > > Admittedly, CIC Shailesh Gandhi is heroically fighting to reduce the > > mountain of pendency before the Central Information Commission. Yes, he > is > > doing so at great personal cost, and is sacrificing much of his income to > > pay the extra staff that he needs for this. Yes, he has disclosed his own > > personal income and assets, and thereby set up a benchmark of > transparency > > for other Information Commissioners, judges etc. CIC Shailesh Gandhi is > > indeed going to great lengths to live upto his own sense of right and > wrong. > > > > But make no mistake, this larger-than-life imposter is part of the fence > > that eats the crops. He has joined those who claim discretionary powers > to > > do what they feel is best, rather than implement the letter and spirit of > > the law. He now wishes to be accepted as a law unto himself. Such > behavior > > empowers him and others like him, but drains power away from the common > man. > > In effect, CIC Shailesh Gandhi is saying, We know best how to implement > the > > Act. And we, in our wisdom, choose not to strictly implement the penal > > provisions. We shall occasionally wave the stick, but we shall not use it > to > > beat the guilty. > > > > SWARAJ IS MY BIRTHRIGHT > > > > My Shailesh Gandhi was committed to Swaraj self-rule, which he said was > > co-terminus with Rule of Law. I was inspired by his conviction that Rule > of > > Law was vastly superior to rule of babus, rule of policemen, rule of > judges, > > rule of ministers etc, because Rule of Law was not arbitrary. Rule of Law > > promised a level playing field for everybody. It promised consistency as > > opposed to arbitrariness. It did not depend on the individual goodness or > > wisdom of the person implementing the law. With Rule of Law, We the > People > > could govern ourselves with dignity without depending on individual > rulers > > who came and went. With Rule of Law, the rights of the weakest of > citizens > > would be upheld as diligently as the rights of the high-and-mighty. To > me, > > this was Gospel and it remains so. > > > > This imposter finds specious and roundabout arguments to say that the RTI > > ACT CANNOT BE IMPLEMENTED IN ITS ENTIRETY. Now that he is an insider to > the > > system, he claims special knowledge of how the whole thing functions -- > > special insights and far greater wisdom than ours. He places himself > beyond > > the pale of reasoning; when questioned and opposed, he retreats into the > > cloak of his greatness. Time and again, his words and actions imply that > we > > must bow and not question. > > > > I owe it to my mentor not to bow before this imposter. My loyalties are > to > > the Gospel of Swaraj and Rule of Law, to the sanctity of measuring > > performance against the rules and laws laid down. (Across the country, > there > > are hundreds like me maybe thousands who have independently sworn > > allegiance to the same Gospel.) > > > > RTI Act 2005 shall not go the same way as the other laws, which have been > > lost amidst discretionary powers and the cobwebbed maze of courts. > > > > The RTI Act shall be implemented, uncut, with penalties and the onus on > PIO > > to justify his actions. The orders of appellate authorities shall > > unambiguously state whether or not the PIO has defaulted, and to what > extent > > has he defaulted. Every default, being intrinsically mala-fide, shall be > > punished in various degrees. And every RTI activist shall confidently > tell > > the Daridra-Narayans of this country, If a PIO dares to delay > information > > for even one day more than the time-limit, he shall definitely pay for > this > > delay. Rely on this Act, and it shall set you free. > > > > This shall happen, Shaileshbhai; I have sworn it, and so have many other > > activists. One fervently prays that when this happens, you will be found > on > > the right side of the historical forces that you yourself played a key > role > > in unleashing. It would be such a shame if you are found to be among > those > > who unsuccessfully resisted the coming of Swaraj. > > > > > > > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > > ------------------------------------ > > Yahoo! Groups Links > > Connect with friends all over the world. Get Yahoo! India Messenger at > http://in.messenger.yahoo.com/?wm=n/ > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/rti_india/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/rti_india/join (Yahoo! 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