The Hindu, 27 Oct 2007
Special Correspondent
Cable operators refuse to say whether there was any instruction
AHMEDABAD: No instruction has been issued by the State Election Commission to black out telecast of the Tehelka expose on the 2002 communal riots. It seemed that Ahmedabad Collector Dhananjay Dwivedi issued an official order, on his own, to cable television operators in his jurisdiction to black out the telecast, sources in the Chief Electoral Officer’s office said.
The Commission is reported to be enquiring from the Collectorate the reason for issuing the order, copies of which were also sent to the Principal Secretary, the Home Department, the Chief Electoral Officer, the Ahmedabad Police Commissioner and the Office of the Entertainment Tax Commissioner.
Consequently, almost all news channels, barring a few, which had picked up the Tehelka expose and had been running discussions and reactions on the programme telecast since Thursday evening, were blacked out by cable operators in Ahmedabad, while showing the entertainment, sports and other channels normally. A large majority of the viewers in the State, particularly in urban areas served by the cable television network, could not view the expose. For, most networks had gone off the air since Thursday evening, just as Aaj Tak and Headlines Today started showing the Tehelka expose.
“Technical problems”
When contacted, cable operators declined to confirm whether there was any instruction from the government to switch off the channels. They claimed that they could not telecast the channels due to some “technical problems,” but could not explain how the problems occurred simultaneously in different parts of the State.
Voluntary organisations working for protection of human rights, condemned the Ahmedabad Collector’s order. The Delhi-based non-governmental organisation, Act Now for Harmony and Democracy, criticised the “undemocratic decision of the Gujarat government” to stop telecast by the news channels showing the Tehelka expose.
There was no official reaction from the State government on the Tehelka expose and Chief Minister Narendra Modi, who was accused of direct involvement in the post-Godhra riots, remained incommunicado. The BJP and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad leaders who were shown in the sting operation went underground. Some of them were reported to have gone out of the State.
While Congress leaders are worried that the timing of the expose could again polarise Hindu votes in favour of Mr. Modi, State BJP spokesman Vijay Rupani said it would have no impact on the December Assembly elections. Blaming the Congress for “manipulating” the sting operation, he said, “Let any Muslim say he had been harassed in Gujarat in the last five years.”
State Congress president Bharat Solanki, refusing to comment on the expose, said, “Let people decide.” However, some senior Congress leaders, on condition of anonymity, said the expose had come at a very inopportune time for the party and Mr. Modi would try to present it as a concerted effort by his critics to “defame Gujarat” all over the world.
The then Minister of State for Home, Gordhan Jhadafiya, named in the expose as having supported the rioters, has turned a dissident and is hobnobbing with the Congress.
Most of the leaders named belonged to the VHP, but the Congress would not be able to take advantage of their dissatisfaction with Mr. Modi, these leaders point out.
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