South Asian countries share common traditions, heritage, culture and history. Thus it is not surprising that Bangladesh, India and Pakistan also share the colonial legacy of repressive and authoritarian laws, often called the colonial hangover . When enacted, the tone, objective and approach of those laws were rules that served to suppress and oppress on behalf of the colonial masters rather than protect the rights, uphold dignity and ensure freedom of the people. Among many laws, the Official Secrets Act, 1923 (OSA) is one of the widely used laws still applicable in Bangladesh, India and Pakistan. The law is popularly known as an anti-espionage law and has under its purview all matters of secrecy and confidentiality with regard to the government or state affairs. The most commonly used sections of OSA are Section 3 and 5. Section 3 criminalises spying and Section 5 criminalises unauthorised disclosure of secret government information including any secret official code, password, sk
Revisiting the role of RTI for sustainable development thedailystar.net - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from thedailystar.net Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.