Anjali Bhardwaj (born 1973) is an Indian social activist working on issues of transparency and accountability. She is a co-convenor of the National Campaign for People's Right to Information (NCPRI)[1] and a founding member of Satark Nagrik Sangathan.[2] She works on issues related to right to information, Lokpal, whistleblower protection, grievance redress, and right to food.

Anjali Bhardwaj at a press conference of the National Campaign for Peoples' Right to Information (NCPRI)

Early life

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Bhardwaj did her BA from Lady Sri Ram College, Delhi University, and holds an MSc degree from the University of Oxford and a master's degree from the Delhi School of Economics, Delhi University.[3]

Work

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Bhardwaj has been involved with the right to information movement in India since 1999. Anjali has been very vocal on the question of accountability and transparency.,[4] She is a co-convenor of the National Campaign for People's Right to Information (NCPRI). Her efforts there include working toward the Right to Information Act, 2005, the Whistle Blowers Protection Act, 2011,[5] The Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act, 2013,[6] and the Grievance Redress Bill.[7]

Anjali is a founding member of Satark Nagrik Sangathan (SNS).[8] Set up in 2003, SNS uses the Right to Information Act to help improve the accountability of the Indian government.[9] Report Cards developed by SNS on the performance of legislators are widely publicized through the media.

She works with RTI Assessment & Advocacy Group (RAAG), which was set up in 2008 to undertake ongoing assessments of the implementation of the RTI Act.[10]

Awards and honors

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Anjali has been honored with the "International Anticorruption Champions Award" by the US Department of State, where she was among the 12 global Anticorruption champions.[11] Anjali was awarded the Ashoka Fellowship for Social Entrepreneurs in 2009 for using the RTI Act to ensure transparency, accountability and responsiveness in the functioning of elected representatives.[12] She was presented the Honour Roll of Lady Shri Ram College in 2011 for promoting transparency and accountability in governance.[13]

Media

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She writes extensively on issues of transparency and accountability in the media:

  • Peoples' Monitoring of the RTI Regime in India 2012–13[14]
  • Article on Lokpal amendments – Indian Express[15]
  • Article on Whistle Blowers Protection Act – Indian Express[16]
  • Article on Prevention of Corruption Act – The Hindu[17]
  • Article on Lokpal Act – EPW[18]
  • Article on Lokpal Bill – Economic Times[19]
  • Article on proposed amendments to the RTI Act – Outlook magazine[20]
  • Article on performance of Information Commissions – The Deccan Herald[21]
  • Article on the RTI Act – Outlook Magazine[22]

References

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  1. ^ "NCPRI » Structure". righttoinformation.info. Archived from the original on 12 October 2016. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
  2. ^ Anuja (1 November 2013). "Satark Nagrik Sangathan | Know whom you are voting for". Livemint. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
  3. ^ "The Telegraph — Calcutta: Jobs". www.telegraphindia.com. Archived from the original on 12 October 2016. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
  4. ^ Bhardwaj, Anjali (23 June 2020). "Transparency during a crisis". The Hindu – via www.thehindu.com.
  5. ^ "Whistleblowers' Bill Likely to Face Rough Weather in Rajya Sabha". NDTV.com. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
  6. ^ Bhatnagar, Gaurav Vivek. "Lokpal Amendment Diluting Act's Purpose, says Anjali Bhardwaj". thewire.in. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
  7. ^ "Citizens Charter: She was denied pension for years". Governance Now. 1 August 2016. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
  8. ^ "Satark Nagrik Sangathan". www.snsindia.org. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
  9. ^ Vidani, Peter. "Case Study #11: Satark Nagrik Sangathan's Report Cards for Elected Representatives". Opening Parliament Blog. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
  10. ^ "Speaker: Thomson Reuters South Asia Risk Summit 2016". Reuters. Archived from the original on 15 December 2017. Retrieved 12 October 2016.
  11. ^ "Recognizing Anticorruption Champions Around the World | US Department of State". Retrieved 25 February 2021.
  12. ^ "Anjali Bharadwaj | Ashoka - India". india.ashoka.org. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
  13. ^ "Lady Shri Ram College". lsr.edu.in. Archived from the original on 18 May 2017. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
  14. ^ "RaaG — CES RTI study 2011 - 13". RTI Assessment and Advocacy group. Archived from the original on 24 April 2017. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
  15. ^ "Betrayal In The House". The Indian Express. 4 August 2016. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
  16. ^ "Whistleblowing in the time of Vyapam". The Indian Express. 13 August 2015. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
  17. ^ Bhardwaj, Anjali; Johri, Amrita (6 May 2016). "How not to fight corruption". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
  18. ^ "The Lokpal Act of 2014". Economic and Political Weekly. 49 (5). 5 June 2015.
  19. ^ "The proposed Jan Lokpal is all too powerful: Anjali Bhardwaj, A member of the working committee of the National Campaign for Peoples' Right to Information - The Economic Times". The Economic Times. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
  20. ^ "Let's All Come To The Party". Outlook India. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
  21. ^ "Tardy working of info panels". Deccan Herald. 25 July 2015. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
  22. ^ "R Stands For..." Outlook India. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
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