Category Archives: Accountability

“The basic object of the Right to Information Act is to empower the citizens, promote transparency and accountability in the working of the Government, contain corruption, and make our democracy work for the people in real sense. It goes without saying that an informed citizen is better equipped to keep necessary vigil on the instruments of governance and make the government more accountable to the governed.” –  Government of India (About Right to Information Act 2005: Bringing Information to the Citizens (http://rti.gov.in, accessed 17 July 2018)
https://indiantribalheritage.org/?p=25221

“The Scheduled Tribes (STs) in the country are the groupings of historically disadvantaged people that are given express recognition in the Constitution of India. […] The policies and schemes implemented by successive governments at the Centre and the state have further worsened the situation. The challenges to their civil, political, social, economic and cultural rights have been critical today, insofar as they perpetuate extreme form of deprivation in many ways. […] The instruments of globalization have not rendered any positive impact in achieving the intended objectives of social security to the indigenous people.” –  Celine Sunny (Report “Impact of Janamaithri Suraksha Project on the Safety/Security of the Tribal People in Kerala, submitted to the Home Department, Govt. of Kerala, accessed 4 July 2019)
https://keralapolice.gov.in/media/pdf/publishing/janamaithri/study-reports/security-of-the-tribal-people-in-kerala.pdf
https://indiantribalheritage.org/?p=29463

“There is no denying the fact that there is widespread corruption in India. Petty corruption which affects the basic rights and services of the common man is highly rampant besides the grand corruption scandals which break out every now and then. A report on bribery in India published by Trace International in January, 09 states that 91% of the bribes were demanded by govt. officials.” – STATUS OF CORRUPTION IN INDIA, 1. in Address to the India CEO Forum titled “Battling India’s malaise of Corruption”
https://cvc.gov.in/sites/default/files/CEO.pdf

“It is not necessary to prosecute each instance of critical reporting – legal harassment and action against a few serves as a deterrent for others.” – Aman Abhishek (TheWire, 25 June 2020)
https://thewire.in/media/covid-19-migrant-crisis-public-opinion-modi
https://indiantribalheritage.org/?p=11721

“The numbers are startling. A report by a consortium of NGOs against custodial torture have released a report in which they say 1,731 people died in custody in India during 2019. This works out to around five custodial deaths a day. […] The fact remains that torture and beating up suspects to extract confessions have become very much part of policing in India. Policemen who engage in it are rarely punished – most times they are simply transferred to another district or state. The rare times that they are held accountable, judiciary have made stinging remarks about the need for reform. In one verdict last year, a judge noted that ‘they are confident that they will not be held accountable even if the victim dies in custody and even if the truth is revealed.’ In 2006, the Indian Supreme Court ruled that each state should set up a police complaints authority where any citizen can lodge a complaint against police officers for any misdemeanour. However, this has not been done in most states. ” – BBC News (27 June 2020) “Jeyaraj and Fenix: Outrage mounts over India police custodial deaths”
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-53202707