About the Book
This book is a definitive guide to using Right to Information (RTI) or Freedom of Information (FOI) or Access to Information (ATI) for journalists, journalism students, social activists, researchers and concerned citizens. In the age of fake news, the smart quip on Twitter, the cheap shot, the put-down, the hyperbolic rant that passes for reportage, this book shows how effective use of the RTI can be a bedrock for investigative journalism and for speaking truth to power.
The volume:
Presents a comprehensive history of transparency laws across the world
Includes pioneering stories from the field that map how ideas were conceived, how questions were framed, how RTI applications were filed, how those were followed up, how the information was processed into a news story and what their impact was
Shows how to write stories beyond the classical inverted pyramid—who, why, what, where, when and how
Lists attempts to make the laws ineffective
Written by one of the pioneers in the field, this volume will be an indispensable reading for scholars and researchers in political science, governance, law and legal studies, democracy, public policy, social change and media studies. It will also immensely interest the everyday reader who wants to learn more about RTI and activism.
Table of Contents:
Foreword. Preface. List of Figures. List of Abbreviations. Acknowledgements. 1. From birth of FOI in Sweden to a legislation in India and Role of Media 2. Contributions to PM Cares Fund 3. A flagship scheme called Prime Minister’s Jan Dhan Yojna 4. Honorary Doctorates and Fake Research Journals 5. Foreign Travels made by Union Ministers 6. Foreign Travels of Bureaucrats of union government 7. Declarations of assets and liabilities of public servants and fight for that 8. Corruption Cases Against bureaucrats from prime services like IAS/IPS/IRS 9. Personnel in Personal Staff of MPs, all in Family 10. Cleaning the Rivers through the RTI Act 11. Guest Houses for Members of Parliament and facilities at Constitution Club 12. NGOs Funded by Government, how politicians get and occupy the JSSs and KVKs 13. Contribution of Non-Resident Indian to India 14. Light Every Corner, RTI Everywhere in the Government and impact 15. Misuse of RTI by Public Authorities, how they play the game with RTI applicants 16. They enacted and implemented it with enthusiasm, now themselves making historic legislation ineffective 17. How a Journalist Can Use RTI and paved way for the Change
About the Author :
Shyamlal Yadav is one of the pioneers of the effective use of RTI for investigative reporting. A part of Investigative Team of The Indian Express, he is also a member of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), Washington DC. He has been part of cross-border investigations like Paradise Papers, FinCEN Files, Pandora Papers, Uber Files, Hidden Treasures and Cyprus Confidential. His work on polluted rivers Streams of Filth (India Today, December 28, 2009) was selected by UNESCO as one of the 20 best investigative reports. His reporting like foreign travel of public servants, MPs appointing their relatives as their personal assistants, bank staff putting their own money in Jan Dhan accounts, stolen Indian antiquities, fake research journals and honorary doctorates being conferred to people in power and more has made a huge impact. He is the only two-time winner of the Ramnath Goenka Award for Excellence in Journalism in Investigative Reporting category, and also a two-time winner of Asian College of Journalism (ACJ) Award for Investigative Journalism. Shyamlal has been awarded with the Lorenzo Natalie Journalism Prize, Developing Asia Journalism Award, National RTI Award and Statesman Rural Reporting Award among others. He has addressed conferences at a range of platforms including Columbia University; London University; and European, Asian and global Investigative Journalism conferences at different parts of the world and workshops organised for journalists in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Brazil. He is author of another book, At The Heart Of Power: The Chief Ministers of Uttar Pradesh (Rupa, 2024). Besides his investigative work, he keeps writing on other political and social issues.
Review :
No one has been able to excavate as much information from the recesses of our governments as Shyamlal Yadav. This volume shows what treasures can be dug up through diligence and inventiveness. It shows what strategies we can adopt. It shows how we must fight to ensure that governments do not whittle down hard-won laws like RTI. If only we had a few more like him, authorities would be brought to heel. May the volume be a beacon for us to follow.
—Arun Shourie, veteran journalist
Shyamlal Yadav’s pioneering work on RTI has made him one of India’s finest investigative journalists. His book reflects his passion for truth and persistence on facts and will be an extremely useful reference and guide for any young person aspiring to join the media.
—Prabhu Chawla, veteran journalist
Perhaps no other journalist has utilized the RTI Act as often and as brilliantly as Shyamlal Yadav has done for nearly two decades now. From high-level corruption to the junkets of ministers whose travel miles added up to 256 times the circumference of the earth, from insane asset declarations to money channelled to dubious NGOs, he’s exposed it all, using RTI. Yet, this fine and important book is more than the sum of his own outstanding stories. It is also a concise history of the RTI, its role in a democratic society, and the powerful tool it offers the investigative journalist. Read this book. Learn about RTI—and about our society.
—P Sainath, veteran journalist, author of Everybody Loves a Good Drought
Shyamlal Yadav is an RTI activist of a different kind. He has married information to its rightful bride, the newspaper, and transformed it into an instrument of social change. The contents of his book show the range and depth of his inquiry. I am sure those who conceived of this law had someone like Shyamlal in their mind to take this law forward, both to expand and explore its potential and to make the powerful also accountable. RTI needs more Shyamlals.
—Satyananda Mishra, former Chief Information Commissioner, CIC, India
Shyamlal Yadav’s book is trailblazer. It is a body of work by a practitioner, lending uniqueness and credibility to his efforts. The data compiled by him through his own queries, on issues of national interest, was disseminated to the public. It is the very ideal which the RTI regime seeks to achieve and the preamble sets out as the goal of transparency and accountability. His efforts to keep people informed in a democracy is a singular contribution.
—Yashovardhan Azad, former Information Commissioner, CIC; former Special Director, Intelligence Bureau, India
Shyamlal Yadav’s secret power is his unrelenting use of India’s Right to Information law to uncover stories of corruption, negligence, and the abuse of power. Yadav is an RTI warrior. His weapons are public documents and fearless reporting. He has wielded them to great effect, holding accountable those who dip their hands into the public purse, use their positions to do wrong, and ignore the misery of the poor and vulnerable in Indian society.
—Sheila S Coronel, Toni Stabile Professor, Columbia Graduate School of Journalism, New York, USA
Shyamlal Yadav not only masters to use the Indian Right to Information law as a powerful tool for his journalistic work, even more importantly, in his role as author, Shyamlal Yadav also masters the art of inspiration and sharing. His book includes detailed practical examples as well as necessary perspectives so peers and future journalists can learn from his experiences and at the same time be encouraged to ask their own questions relevant in their own context.
—Brigitte Alfter, senior German-Danish journalist; FOI activist; Director, Arena for Journalism in Europe
Shyamlal Yadav is one of the main reasons that India’s RTI law is so powerfully effective. He has not only shown how to collect startling documents from government but also demonstrated that these facts can be turned into powerful stories that move people to action. To those who say that we are in a ‘post-fact’ era, I say: Look at Shyamlal Yadav. He has already earned his place as a historic figure in the global freedom of information movement.
—Mark Lee Hunter, Paris-based author and investigative journalist; Editor of UNESCO’s Global Investigative Journalism Casebook
Shyamlal has made a singular contribution in RTI-based journalism. He has inspired a generation of journalists to practice this law for investigative reporting. Let me admit: I’m among them. Whenever I conduct training on this law to encourage reporters to use it, reference of Shyamlal has been an integral part of my presentation. Not only is he himself a great story to tell, his book is a wonderful guide for journalists aiming to excel in the profession by using RTI laws.
—Umar Cheema, investigative journalist, The News, Islamabad, Pakistan
The benefits of using the RTI law for journalistic purposes could be less convincing. However, Shyamlal Yadav is among its exceptions and his stories from India inspire journalists in other countries and his work is much popular among reporters in Sri Lanka as well. This book brings about another dimension as to how RTI supports building impactful investigative stories and for those who are venturing into exploring the use of RTI, to learn the different approaches, techniques, and good practices that make stories compelling and bring about change.
—Kumar Lopez, CEO, Sri Lanka Press Institute, Colombo, Sri Lanka
This meticulously researched book provides real-life cases that I used in several training within the United Nations to illuminate the critical role of access to information in the fight against corruption. With keen insights and compelling narratives, it unveils the significant impact of unfettered access to information to the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals. In an era where information is the lifeblood of journalism, this book stands an indispensable reference for journalists, activists, researchers, and those seeking to navigate the labyrinth of data and its profound impact on transparency and accountability.
—Dian Kuswandini, Media practitioner and focal point for UN-SDG Target 16.10 on Public Access to Information, Paris, France
This book is an ideal guide not only for journalists but for all the citizens who want to make powers accountable and value facts. All the case studies he wrote in this book contain insightful and thought-provoking episodes as well as the principle of the free flow of information. Journalists from across the world could learn common lessons from his experience. His work along with this new edition will shine even brighter in this difficult post-truth era.
—Satoshi Kusakabe, investigative journalist, The Mainichi Newspapers, Japan
