Central minister of state for shipping, information technology and telecommunications Milind Deora shares his views on the ongoing debate regarding the inclusion of all political parties under the ambit of RTI. He talks to this newspaper about the need for bringing in greater transparency by way of election reforms.
Q: All political parties, including the Congress, have shown reluctance regarding including their parties under the ambit of the RTI. What is your take on it?
I don’t think that the political parties, especially the Congress, are disrespecting the RTI. If that had been the case, we would not have pushed the RTI bill in 2005. The parties have been submitting the returns to the Income- Tax and electoral departments, so I don’t see any need for internal functioning to come under the RTI. We should not forget that the parties do not take state funding. However, I am glad that the amendment bill has been sent to the standing committee.
Q: Do you think that such massive amounts of funds from unknown sources forces parties to take decisions in favour of the donors?
Even if this analysis was not accessible through the RTI, it still does not address the core issue of electoral funding. It is not just the political parties that run on public or other forms of support. The case is the same for every other organisation in the world. What is important is how seriously we are going to regulate it.
Q: Why do you think the political parties are refusing to disclose the source of their funding?
This should be viewed in the wider context of the electoral reforms. When political parties are not resorting to state funding, then it is for them to decide whether they wish to disclose the source of their funding or not.
Q: How important a role do the electoral reforms play in bringing about transparency in political funding?
The electoral reforms are very important. We can adopt the American or the German model where a mix of state funding as well as private funding is in practice. It makes them more accountable as far as funding is concerned. I think this would definitely help us improve the electoral system.
Q: Do you think that bringing political parties under the ambit of RTI would ensure transparency?
If the parties do not enjoy state funding, then the functioning of the political parties should not come under RTI’s ambit. However, the demands of bringing the political parties under the RTI’s ambit are reasonable.