# Tamil Nadu revokes RTI exemption for police after backlash

2026-09-27T14:21:22+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk

Corroboration: 4 independent outlets

Tamil Nadu withdrew its order exempting the Public (Law and Order) Department from the RTI Act, 2005, within hours of issuing it. The reversal came after criticism from allies Congress and VCK, and from transparency advocates. The original GO, issued on September 21, invoked Section 24(4) of the RTI Act to classify the department as an intelligence and security organisation. Critics including Congress MP Karti Chidambaram and VCK chief Thol Thirumavalavan warned it would block access to records on police firing, custodial deaths, and communal clashes, calling it undemocratic and a bad precedent. The withdrawal order, issued the same day, stated that GO Ms.No.57 stands revoked. Karti Chidambaram welcomed the government's decision.

## Indian Opinion Analysis

All four sources report the same core event: a swift rollback. Timesnownews leads with political backlash from allies, framing the reversal as a response to democratic pressure, while Livemint and Rediff foreground procedural details and the scope of shielded information, giving space to the minister's defence. ABPLive adopts a similar neutral-report stance but includes a FAQ. No source adopts a pro-government or critical slant, coverage is uniform straight reporting. The implication is that coalition dynamics, not just public protest, forced the climbdown. The next test for the TVK government will be maintaining transparency on sensitive law-and-order data.

## Coverage

- timesnownews.com (neutral report) <https://www.timesnownews.com/chennai/following-political-backlash-vijay-govt-rolls-back-controversial-rti-exemption-go-article-156235028>
  Leads with backlash and quotes critics heavily, but reports rollback factually
- livemint.com (neutral report) <https://www.livemint.com/news/india/tamil-nadu-government-withdraws-rti-exemption-for-law-and-order-department-amid-criticism-11790510226916.html>
  Straight wire-style reporting with detailed background on affected information
- news.abplive.com (neutral report) <https://news.abplive.com/news/tamil-nadu-vijay-government-takes-u-turn-withdraws-controversial-rti-exemption-order-after-backlash-1868606>
  Neutral summary, includes minister's defence and FAQ section
- rediff.com (neutral report) <https://www.rediff.com/news/report/tn-govt-revokes-controversial-rti-move-amid-backlash/20260927.htm>
  PTI-based neutral report, adds political context with coalition criticism

Tags: Karti Chidambaram, RTI Act, Tamil Nadu, Thol Thirumavalavan, TVK, VCK
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