Social activist and Magsaysay awardee Aruna Roy has sought intervention from the UPA Supremo and National Advisory Council(NAC) Chairperson Sonia Gandhi in the killing of MGNREGA activist Niyamat Ansari in Jharkhand and demanded CBI probe in the killing. Ms Roy also expressed serious concern over and brutal assault on another activist in Barmer district of Rajasthan who was working for the cause of NERGA and RTI. In a letter sent to Ms Gandhi, Ms Roy, who is a NAC member and convener of its Working Group on Transparency and Accountability, also demanded institution of an independent inclusive social audit system under NREGA.She has stated that killing of Ansari and increasing number of atrocities on those who were diligently and honestly fighting the system generated evils to make flagship programmes like MGNREA and RTI work effectively at grass root level, should be addressed immediately. She said this also reflected that the two programmes had really empowering the people to question feudal and corrupt people with tools of legitimacy, indeed for the first time in the country and secondly exposed complicity of the local administration in protecting the offenders. "The killing in Jharkhand and assault in Barmer are part of a pattern where individuals fighting for better implementation of NREGA and RTI have been brutally targeted by vested interests, often fatally. While this is a proof that both NREGA and RTI are instrumental in challenging existing power structures, there is a strong concurrent need to support and protect citizens in their anti-corruption efforts," she observed. "Therefore, it is imperative that Government of India immediately issue amended social audit rules in line with the CAG recommendations," Ms Roy demanded.
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