The Times of India
3 Mar 2009
'Media constantly targeted by fundamentalists'
by Nandita Sengupta, TNN
NEW DELHI: Fundamentalists are not only increasingly targeting the media but also getting away without punishment, say three editors who were recently arrested on charges of hurting public sentiment.
"Before arresting anybody, the authorities must determine whether the law should be applied at all. Only then they should consider prosecution", says Ravindra Kumar, editor of Kolkata's The Statesman.
Kumar was arrested on February 8 in Kolkata under IPC's Section 295A to pacify a group of protestors. IPC's 295A forbids "deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings." Kumar's crime? He had published an article by Johann Hari first carried in The Independent on January 28. The piece, "Why should I respect oppressive religions?" is a comment on how the space for criticism of religion is getting alarmingly squeezed.
B V Seetaram, editor of Mangalore daily Karavali Ale (Coastal Wave), says banal invoking of 295A has become a tool of harassment. Seetaram was handcuffed and hauled before a court on January 4, arrested on a two years old defamation case. Subsequently, the police foisted eight cases on him under Section 295a to extend his detention by a month.
"The Bajrang Dal is out to make coastal Karnataka a mini Gujarat," he says. "The continuous harassment we face by police and the Bajrang Dal are only because we uphold secular values. We castigated them for the Church attacks and the animosity began in right earnest," says Seetaram.
Basavaraj Swami, editor of Kannada daily Suddi Mole (Source of News) faced religious hooliganism for the first time on February 20. A small group lodged a complaint against a children's story, Mohammed the Merciful, the Raichur paper published objecting to a sketch along with the story. "We agreed to publish a corrigendum, and I even read it out to them," says Basavaraj. But the small group swelled to a 2,000-strong mob which attacked his offices soon after.
"There is no place left for dialogue," says Basavaraj, finding in local religious leaders the tendency to create mischief. The police, he says, are all too easily outnumbered and the mob has to be appeased.
The editors were in the capital on Monday to attend a seminar titled, "Is religion beyond media scrutiny?" Speaking during the seminar, Justice J S Verma said that the interpretation of the law is just as crucial. There are clear strictures on freedom of expression, and while desisting from commenting on the current cases, Justice Verma said that there must be punishment for malicious prosecution as well.
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