Ripples created with unexpected raids on BBC offices were downplayed with claims of ardent tax evasion investigations by the Indian government last year. This deceptive argument was too baseless to believe.
The timing of meaningful activism of tax authorities was sharply linked with the release of a revealing documentary by BBC UK titled “India: The Modi Question”. The pinching issue of the 2002 Muslim Gujarat riots is a permanent black spot on the profile of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. As per safe estimates, more than 1000 innocent Muslims lost their lives in the hands of brutal BJP and RSS extremists who mercilessly executed the unarmed citizens with undeniable support of the state machinery led by none other than CM Gujrat Narinder Modi.India as a state, BJP as a party and PM Narendra Modi as a political leader have never responded satisfactorily to the questions raised about the escalating Islamophobia in India.
BJP under Modi’s overambitious populist leadership has become a synonym for the violent religious extremism perpetuating at an alarming pace in India. Abhorrent state-sponsored violence displayed in Gujarat under Modi’s watch against the Muslims has now transformed into a state policy tool. This objectionable violent strategy paid rich dividends to BJP and Modi in electoral contests but the moral dents caused to the international image of India are neither small nor easily repairable. BBC documentary, which irked the BJP regime, contains explosive eye-opening facts about the controversial involvement of Narinder Modi in the notorious 2002 Gujarat riots. Modi had to face international condemnation while staying on the visa ban list of the USA for his criminal involvement in the massacre of an unarmed Muslim minority.
While celebrating the economic growth, BJP’s hawkish regime continues to dust down the international criticism of surging press intimidation and minority persecution.
The rise of an internationally reckoned ‘extremist’ and ‘terrorist’ to the office of Prime Minister is a big question mark on the Indian self-style title of the largest democratic secular state of the world. As an outcome of two consecutive tenures of unchallenged rule in New Delhi, now, BJP along with its splinter extremist wings is well entrenched to intimidate those quarters who criticize the government for extremist pursuits. Free media aiming at an exposure of the government does not fit well in the suppressive vision of hawkish BJP leadership. Besides harassing the Indian media, over a period of time, the BJP has started extending its intimidating arms to foreign media outlets as well. Contrary to the common democratic norms, the BJP under Modi’s leadership has never liked to act as an answerable entity to media, Indian citizens and international watchdogs.
In blatant denial of criticism for perpetuating human rights violations, the BJP government forcefully closed the offices of Amnesty International in India. Renowned journalist and activist Aakar Patel, the chairman of Amnesty International was prevented from travelling abroad citing a legal case leading to his placement on the exit control list by the CBI. Passport of the Aakar Patel was confiscated which he later on got back after fighting a tricky legal battle.
A BJP parliamentarian was behind the case filed against Amnesty International which is no less than an undeniable evidence of the government-sponsored act of intimidation. Almost a year-long coercive harassment of BBC in the garb of tax evasion scrutiny has eventually concluded in the formulation of a collective newsroom dominated by the Indian staff. This is nothing but an absolute denial of press freedom through well-pointed coercive legislation made by the ruling regime known as the proud flagbearer of religious extremism.
It is not only the BBC which faced the wrath of the irked BJP rather a huge number of dissenting voices have paid the heavy price of challenging the rogue methods of Hindutva Hindutva-influenced Indian government. The systematic silencing of dissent and unjustified legal curbs on press freedom are visible in IIOJK, Punjab, Manipur and Naxalite-dominated states. Unlike other parts of India, the masses in these states are victims of decades-old state-sponsored atrocities.
Let’s take a glance at IIOJK where International Watchdogs and media organizations have been protesting against the unjustifiable repeated arbitrary arrest of human rights activist cum journalist Khuram Pervez. Renowned journalists Irfan Meraj and Rana Ayub have remained constantly in the cross-hairs of the Indian government. High-handedness against the press and journalists often goes beyond usual coercive moves.
In areas like IIOJK, where the masses and local media are striving hard to get rid of state-imposed slavery, rogue state actors never hesitate to create fear through targeted killings. Who can forget the cold-blooded assassination of Shujat Bukhari the founding editor of IIOJK’s second largest paper “Rising Kashmir”? This frontline renowned journalist from IIOJK was brutally murdered in Srinagar five years back.
Crafty diplomacy and manipulative alignment with global players might help Modi to fetch a prominent spot in media lenses occasionally. However, the rapid transformation of Indian secular democracy into an extremist orthodoxy under BJP rule is seen as a major abnormal phenomenon. India miserably slipped down ten more points and reached 150th ranking out of 180 countries in the World Press Freedom Index.
While celebrating the economic growth and highly overrated democratic credentials, BJP’s hawkish regime continues to dust down the international criticism on surging press intimidation, minority persecution, attacks on worship places, mob lynching episodes, trans-nation assassination plots and human rights violations.
While criticizing the suppression of opposition MPs under BJP rule, Congress leader Shashi Tharoor said “The Moment has come to write the obituaries for the parliamentary democracy in our country”. Shashi gave a lot of concessions to the BJP. It is time to acknowledge the massive suppression under Modi’s rule by writing collective obituaries for persecuted minorities, snatched press freedom, human rights violations, distorted secularism and damaged democracy in India.
The writer is a freelance and can be reached at sikandarnoorani @yahoo.com
Obituary for Press Freedom and Democracy of India
21
0
04.01.2024
Ripples created with unexpected raids on BBC offices were downplayed with claims of ardent tax evasion investigations by the Indian government last year. This deceptive argument was too baseless to believe.
The timing of meaningful activism of tax authorities was sharply linked with the release of a revealing documentary by BBC UK titled “India: The Modi Question”. The pinching issue of the 2002 Muslim Gujarat riots is a permanent black spot on the profile of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. As per safe estimates, more than 1000 innocent Muslims lost their lives in the hands of brutal BJP and RSS extremists who mercilessly executed the unarmed citizens with undeniable support of the state machinery led by none other than CM Gujrat Narinder Modi.India as a state, BJP as a party and PM Narendra Modi as a political leader have never responded satisfactorily to the questions raised about the escalating Islamophobia in India.
BJP under Modi’s overambitious populist leadership has become a synonym for the violent religious extremism perpetuating at an alarming pace in India. Abhorrent state-sponsored violence displayed in Gujarat under Modi’s watch against the Muslims has now transformed into a state policy tool. This objectionable violent strategy paid rich dividends to BJP and Modi in electoral contests but the moral dents caused to the international image of India are neither small nor easily repairable. BBC documentary, which irked the BJP regime, contains explosive eye-opening facts about the controversial involvement of Narinder Modi in the notorious 2002 Gujarat riots. Modi........
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