Shashidhar Mishra

Shashidhar Mishra (1975–2010) was an Indian Right to Information Act (RTI) activist who was shot dead by unknown assailants near his house in Phulwaria Village, located near the Begusarai town of Bihar, on the night on 14 February 2010.[1][2][3]

By profession, he was street vendor who sold pens, sweets and snacks in Barauni market. He lived in a mud house in his village and used a bicycle for transport. He is survived by a wife and four children.[1]

He earned the nickname of "Khabri Lal" (the news man) and worked tirelessly to expose corruption at panchayat and block levels. He filed his first RTI application in 2008 and by the time he died he had filed more than 1,000 RTI applications, mostly concerning issues troubling his village.[2][4]

The National RTI Forum has honoured him by naming an award after him, the Shashidhar Mishra RTI Gallantry award[5]

References

  1. 1 2 Jason Burke, "Dying for data: the Indian activist killed for asking too many questions", The Guardian, 27 December 2010
  2. 1 2 Rajiv Kumar, "RTI activist shot dead by criminals in Begusarai dist", Times of India, 16 February 2010
  3. ↑ Shoumojit Banerjee, "In Bihar, death for RTI activist who knew too much", The Hindu, 21 February 2010
  4. ↑ Mehboob Jeelani, "Dangerous Knowledge", The Caravan, 1 January 2011
  5. ↑ "Shashidhar Mishra RTI Gallantry award"
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