What a disgraceful week ended! The week of the utter silence over supporting Rohit Sardana against the threats he received from Muslim fanatics. The week of dead conscience that doesn’t fetch any concern over the brutal murder of Tripura Journo Bhowmik. Now, last night, a journalist shot dead in Kanpur, UP.
With so much going on behind the black curtain, Vote bank issues, frivolous cries, and boo-hoo pinpoint game is the only thing that is making it’s way to the newsrooms or the front pages! While one individual cries Nationalistic, other cries anti-nationalistic. But we are seeing some less heed being given to some severe issues or events that took place within this last week!
#1.
Sudip Datta Bhowmik was shot dead by a constable of the 2nd Tripura State Rifles this week. According to sources, he was murdered because he had filed some series of reports on corruption cases which directly pointed to Tappan Debbarma. He had also said to have almost exposed Debbarmaâs extramarital affair. Bhowmik was murdered in cold blood because he was honest and believed in truth! It wasn’t the only instance. On September 20th, another journalist, Shantanu Bhowmik, was killed by a mob in plain sight of the cops! Both of these cases didn’t make it to the big screen! The question is why?! Why are journalists and reporters mum about it? Why is nobody talking about it?
Everybody forgot Bhowmik! Why? Maybe because he was from North East? Or perhaps, his death did not feed the hypocrite sentiments of our honored journalists! We did not see the same silence following Gauri Lankesh Murder! The murder was turned into a much controversial and political crime, as it did fuel the double-faced sentiments of Elite journalists! We did not see the same silence when other journalists were threatened with death over an opinion! On the other hand, Honesty killed in plain sight is not even addressed!
#2.
Similar death threats were spewed on Rohit Sardana when he chose to opine with the not-so-secular sentiment! Rohit had questioned the fellow intellectuals of their hypocrisy over freedom of speech on other religion! He asked why the term âSexyâ was not used for other religions!
The Shia Muslims group Anjuman-e-Imamia also staged a protest to India Today office, infuriating about the tweet! Several are supporting Rohit over the backlash he has received! But the question remains to why the five-star journalist fraternity is being silent on this? The amount of reverb was vast and loud when Gauri Lankesh was murdered! Many five-star journalists even did a media trial on who was responsible! But we see complete inaction and silence on Sudip Bhowmik murder and threats received to Rohit Sardana!
#3.
On 25th Nov, there was a Dileep Padgaonkar Memorial Lecture too, at the Symbiosis Vishwabhavan Auditorium in Pune, which was delivered by Rajdeep Sardesai. Talking about âResponsibilities of the Conventional Media in the Age of Proliferating Social Media,â Rajdeep also spoke about how media is scheming views and truths into a âNationalist vs. Anti-Nationalist eco-system!
While speaking at the podium of the Dileep Padgaonkar memorial lecture organized on the death anniversary of veteran journalist and ex-Times Of India editor Dileep Padgaonkar, Rajdeep Sardesai expressed a lot of high-value things about the current state of India Media. Yes, high-value items which he possesses. With recalling of his learning days with Padgaonkar, he covered how Journalists fraternity is looming large on the boundary of Nationalists and Anti-nationals? He had thrown the examples for the severely deteriorated condition of newsrooms, filled with the fear of ruling party that is pushing to set the agenda of Primetime. The cacophonous debates by his rivals and removal of the editor of Hindustan times over hate tracker chart, he stressed within apostrophes. The Murder of Gauri Lankesh, Kanhaiya Kumar were among all those he remembered along with Padgaoankar in his lecture. He awarded newly emerged fact-check media- scroll.in and alt news with great thanks. But he forgot to speak how Rohit Sardana, his colleague from his organization, India Today is being threatened? He could not mention even tribute words to Tripura Journalist – Bhowmik, brutally killed for his investigation, isn’t the awkward from his so-called high-value items?
