India, Oct. 6 -- October 12 marks 20 years of implementation of the Right to Information (RTI) Act, the only law that empowers citizens to access official information. The decadal anniversary comes at the time when the law is facing its worst existential challenges.

It is not only because of the amendment to the RTI Act through Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act that prohibits providing of "personal" information, the bigger danger is the governments' seemingly non-serious approach in implementing the law in letter and spirit. That has become clear from a large number of posts lying vacant in the information commissions.

Of the 10 posts of information commissioners in the Central Information Commissioner (CIC), eight are lying v...