Tamil Nadu Revokes RTI Exemption for Law and Order Department After Backlash
Tamil Nadu has withdrawn its order exempting the Public (Law and Order) Department from the RTI Act, days after opposition parties criticised the move.
The Tamil Nadu government has withdrawn its order exempting the Public (Law and Order) Department from the Right to Information Act, 2005, days after the decision drew sharp criticism from opposition parties and political leaders.
The exemption had been issued under Section 24(4) of the RTI Act, which allows certain organisations to be classified as intelligence and security bodies and kept outside the transparency law's purview. The government's latest order states that Government Order Ms.No 57 of the Human Resources Management (R) department, dated 21 September 2026, relating to the exemption of the Public (Law and Order) Department under sub-section (4) of Section 24 of the RTI Act, 2005, stands revoked.
The original notification, published in the Government Gazette, had raised concerns that citizens would lose access to information on a wide range of policing and law-and-order matters.
What the exemption covered
The Public (Law and Order) Department handles several sensitive subjects, including inquiry reports on police firing, custodial deaths and allegations of police torture. The exemption had also covered deaths of remand prisoners, security-related detention cases, communal and caste clashes, requests to withdraw politically sensitive cases, and matters concerning sanction for prosecution in cases involving defamatory articles, news reports and speeches.
Opposition pushback
The move triggered criticism from opposition leaders. CPM MP Venkatesan called for the order to be withdrawn, describing it as an open effort to turn Tamil Nadu into a police state.
Congress MP Karti Chidambaram questioned the decision, arguing that the RTI framework was created to improve transparency and accountability in governance. He said the move did not set a good precedent and recalled that the RTI Act was a landmark decision brought in by the Congress-led UPA government to strengthen democratic accountability across India.
Chidambaram also pointed to the nature of information handled by the department, noting that it deals with inquiry reports on police firing, custodial deaths, torture and deaths of remand prisoners, security-related detention cases, communal and caste clash reports, requests for withdrawal of politically sensitive cases, and matters relating to sanction of prosecution for defamatory articles, news items and speeches. He said such information was being shielded from the public and that RTI must be expanded, not restricted.
Government's earlier defence
The government had earlier maintained that the exemption was limited in scope and was primarily aimed at information related to community clashes. TVK Minister CTR Nirmal Kumar had said that only community clash-related incident details would be withheld under RTI because many people were seeking information on such clashes, and that only a few of the 20 sections under Law and Order were exempted.
He had also said the government could revisit the decision if members of the public expressed discomfort, stating that it would be taken to the Chief Minister for further action.