‘A Dog With a Bone in Its Mouth Can’t Bark’: Arun Shourie on Mainstream Media
New Delhi: Speaking at The Wire Dialogues on September 2, Arun Shourie came down hard on mainstream media. “It is the fourth estate of democracy. It is the institution designed to hold the government to account. But, sadly we have not seen that happen,” he said.
Shourie elaborated on how the media – barring a few publications – has not followed up on important stories. “In the story about Jay Shah, The Wire only documented what is on the department of company affairs website. And you say that nobody should talk about it,” Shourie said. “The media is not following up. Its duty would be, if there is a stay order against The Wire then everybody else should print it.”
Shourie cited the example of the Pentagon papers where the The New York Times was served a restraining order barring the newspaper from publishing further after it had broken the story. As the Times could no longer publish, The Washington Post, a competitor, followed up on the story and published several articles. Both the Post and the Times were taken to court by the government, where the newspapers eventually won in a landmark decision for press freedom.
“In any country with a free press, if one paper publishes one aspect of a story, twenty others will start digging and publish other things. Here the twenty ran away. Only The Caravan followed up on The Wire’s story,” Shourie said highlighting The Caravan’s investigation into the business fortunes of Amit Shah’s son, Jay Shah.
Karan Thapar, the interviewer, asked Shourie if he thought that the media was deliberately not following up. Shourie responded by recalling a Zulu proverb, “A dog with a bone in its mouth can’t bark.”
Shourie explained that he did not believe that the media is not speaking truth to power out of fear. “I feel they are not following up out of greed. The accounts of fear are an excuse that the media is using.”
Responding to Thapar’s question on whether he was disappointed or disgusted with the media, Shourie said, “I have sort of passed all that. There is such a great change in the media, you are wasting your emotions being either disgusted or disappointed.”
The former minister in Atal Bihar Vajpayee’s government, however, stated fear and intimidation also played a role in muzzling the media. “There is no doubt that there is also an attempt to intimidate the media. ABP news sacked some of its journalists. You [Karan Thapar] are not on the main channels as you should be. NDTV is also facing pressures. The strategy is to kill the chickens to frighten the monkeys. You don’t have to do it to everybody,” Shourie said.
Shourie also had a few words of advice for readers. “My advice to readers is that you should support The Wire. There are only a few publications like Scroll, Altnews, The Wire and one newspaper, The Indian Express, which are telling the truth.”
“Mahatma Gandhi used to say that the hands of copyists are our printing machines. Today you have the internet. If some story is blocked by a court order, let us all circulate it. A hundred thousand people circulate it and it will reach all across India,” Shourie said.
courtesy : thewire.in
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Punjab CM Mann meets President Murmu, seeks cancellation of membership of 6 RS members
Chandigarh (PTI): Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Tuesday met President Droupadi Murmu, demanding the termination of the membership of six Rajya Sabha MPs from Punjab who defected to the BJP and also pressed for the introduction of a constitutional provision allowing for the recall of members.
Accompanied by party MLAs and ministers, Mann visited Rashtrapati Bhavan in Delhi.
This meeting followed a significant setback for the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on April 24, when seven of its 10 Rajya Sabha MPs -- Raghav Chadha, Ashok Mittal, Sandeep Pathak, Harbhajan Singh, Rajendra Gupta, Vikramjit Sahney and Swati Maliwal -- quit and merged with the BJP, alleging that the party had strayed from its principles, values and core morals. Six of the seven MPs who left AAP hailed from Punjab.
After he met with the President, Mann addressed the media here, describing the departure of the seven MPs as a "murder" of the Constitution. He stated, "Seven MPs merging with another party is completely unconstitutional. I spoke to Rashtrapati ji in detail."
Mann pointed out that he told the President that the BJP holds only two MLA seats (in Punjab), yet now has six MPs in the Rajya Sabha. He questioned, "How can this be possible? Isn't it a mockery of the Constitution?
"If they are such revolutionaries at heart, then they should have resigned from their six seats. The AAP could have sent someone else," Mann said, taking a swipe at them.
He emphasised the need for a recall provision in the Constitution, referencing MP Raghav Chadha's previous demands for such a measure when members fail to meet public expectations.
"Have you lived up to the expectations of the people?" Mann challenged the MPs during his statement.
Mann also presented a letter to the President, signed by all AAP MLAs. He differentiated between the terms 'elected' and 'selected,' stating, "They were 'selected.' Therefore, their membership should be cancelled."
The President assured Mann that she would consult constitutional experts before responding.
Earlier in the day, Mann, along with party MLAs, departed for Delhi from Chandigarh.
Speaking to reporters in Chandigarh, Mann affirmed that all AAP MLAs stand united with the party. "Only I have been given time for the meeting," Mann said.
"The President is the guardian of the Constitution. She is the constitutional head of the country," he added.
Later in a post on X in Hindi, Mann said, "Our struggle to protect Punjab's rights and interests continues. Today, along with all AAP MLAs, I have left to discuss Punjab's burning issues and present the state's strong voice before the President.
As your public servant, our government remains fully committed to Punjab's prosperity and the safeguarding of the rights of every section of society."
The MLAs and ministers gathered at the chief minister's residence in the morning before heading to Delhi, carrying placards that read 'Punjab Mann De Naal' and 'Punjab's Traitors.'
The legislators left for Delhi in buses.
Mann had previously sought an appointment with the President to meet with party MLAs and demand the "recall" of the Rajya Sabha MPs who defected to the BJP. However, only Mann was given a time slot for the meeting.
