Anna Hazare’s fast ended after government notified the formation of the joint panel on the Lok Pal issue. The government felt the impact of the groundswell support for the fasting Gandhian from the nooks and corners of India, saw the writing on the wall and softened its stand.
Anna Hazare called this a people’s victory and asked people for continuous support till the bill is passed in the parliament with real teeth to punish the corrupt severely.
Surely this is not a one man’s victory. Yoga Guru Baba Ramdev reached lakhs of villages to educate the people and made them aware of the corrupt practices and the harmful effect on the social fabric of our country. This awareness session was on for nearly 2 years. Discontent against the rampant corruption and scams was simmering amongst the people for a long time.
Baba Ramdev, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Anna Hazare were all on one platform crusading against corruption. Baba Ramdev was the pioneering motivator and came down heavily on the scamsters, Swiss stash issue, punishment of the corrupt leaders, confiscation of the ill-gotten wealth etc.
But on the day Anna Hazare ended the fast, news papers like the Times of India gave more prominence to Anna Hazare and not to spiritual leaders like Baba Ramdev or Sri Sri Ravi Shanker who were together on this issue. Was it comfortable for these papers to put only the Gandhian’s face to the success than the crusaders who donned the spiritual robes too.
This is the type of disinformation campaign some leading papers have been indulging in on matters of national importance. Merit gets side-tracked while at times space is provided for the trivials.
Recall reporting by the Times of India on the morning after the World Cup finals. Dhoni played a Captain’s Inning but Sachin failed to play a veteran one. Team India won the Cup. But Times of India was splashed with Sachin’s Photos and the clamoring reportage on the demand of Bharat Ratna for him. Dhoni’s photographs were hardly to be seen. Why this Side-tracking of the meritorious?
Newspapers like the Times of India must give credit where it is due. Change is in the air in India. Newspaper which scream as number one and number two will be shunned by the uprising youth who stand for fairness and merit. Channels like NDTV too were selectively showing the faces of young participants when they were reacting to questions by the reporter while the ritualistic aspect of candle lighting were focused most of the time.
Disinformation too is propagandic and a corrupt practice. Merit should take the front seat, rest will follow. Lets give merit the honor, respect and admiration it deserves. Baba Ramdev, Sri Sri Ravi Shanker and Dhoni must be featured along with Hazare and Sachin when it matters. If India has to march on with truth and strength, biased and vested interest reporting for propagandic disinformation will not help. Old habits must change to create space for the new.
