When I was still a kid, I remember, most of my life was dominated by superheroes. While my summers of the late 90’s were occupied by Chacha Chaudhary, Doga, Nagraj, Dhruv, and Tringa etc. (Indian superhero comics were easily available back then!), the television was ruled by Disney animated series, until Shaktimaan appeared.
Soon after making the debut, every kid almost instantaneously felt in love with him, and Shaktimaan began ruling the television screens on late Sunday mornings. And why wasn’t that supposed to happen? He was the only ‘live’ Indian superhero we had, he used to save people and the world from bad forces, his powers never failed to amaze children, and every kid idolized him and wanted to be as courageous as him. For young ones, he was an insignia of hope.
But as they say, all good things must come to an end. And our childhood was no exception. As time passed by, we began to realize the difference between fantasy and reality, and Shaktimaan soon became a memory.
A few years back, I noticed a man on a news channel who was dressed in a suit and screaming on people in English. All of the sudden the man reminded me of Gangadhar, who was the disguised character of Shaktimaan. I mean, his dressing, the spectacles, and the media job – don’t both the characters match? My TV screen said that his name is Arnab Goswami, but my mind begged to disagree. Well, of course, Pt. Gangadhar Vidyadhar Mayadhar Omkamath Shastri was actually a fictional character, who had super powers. But didn’t this man have some too? I mean it really takes a lot of guts to do what he is doing. Arguing deafeningly with strongly positioned panellists and giving strong rebuttals is not a child’s play. No wonder why is he so popular, and no wonder why his debates invite more criticism than admirations.
Well, Arnab Goswami, the editor-in-chief of the news channel Times Now, always remains the center of attraction for his arguments and popular one-liners, though this time the reason was wholly different. Mr. Goswami was in news for getting ‘Y’ category security cover by the government over a threat from “Pakistan-based terrorist groups”.
Under the ‘Y’ category security cover, Arnab Goswami gets 20 guards for round-the-clock protection along with two personal security officers for close proximity security. This security will be provided on the basis of a threat-perception analysis by the Intelligence Bureau (IB).
There are two types of protection provided by the government — positional and threat-based. Under positional security, a dignitary is given security cover on the basis of the position he or she holds — such as cabinet ministers and Supreme Court judges. In the second category, a person is provided security on the basis of a threat-perception analysis by the Intelligence Bureau (IB).
The government provides security under four categories — ‘Z Plus’ (around 40 guards with two escort vehicles), ‘Z’ (around 30 guards with one escort vehicle), ‘Y’ (around 20 guards) and ‘X’ (four guards). The Centre has around 450 protectees under these categories. Out of them, around 275 people have been provided threat-based security cover. The state governments also have their own list of protectees.
It should be noted here that the threat has been ‘expected’ by the IB, based upon the finding of their networks. “Goswami is being given security on the basis of a threat-perception analysis by the IB. We will go by the IB recommendation. He faces threats from Pakistan-based terrorist groups due to his comments against them on Times Now,” said a home ministry official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity as he is not authorized to speak to the media.
The home ministry is likely to ask the Maharashtra police to handle Mr. Arnab Goswami’s security as he is based out of Mumbai.
This news, however, was not welcomed wisely by many in the industry. After news broke of Arnab Goswami being provided a threat based Y-category security by the government, many eminent trolls and journalists united to oppose the security cover provided to him while not sparing any thought about the threat Arnab faces from Pakistani terrorists for his reporting against them and their mother country.
While a band of intellectual clowns is questioning IB’s way of arriving at this perception and demanding the name of that particular terror outfit, others are debating if it is wise to provide security to Arnab Goswami at taxpayers’ expense. Well, before moving ahead, it is important to understand that Intelligence Bureau is an elite machinery, and does not perceive threats randomly by playing “akkad-bakkad-bambey-bo”. Their estimations are based on evaluations of highly sophisticated data. If they are reading a threat, it’s serious!
Secondly, about the terrorist organization’s name, does the intellectual syndicate think that a cowardly operating terror outfit will announce their identity and assault plans on social media before executing it?
Some are also alleging that Arnab is a pro-BJP and that’s why he is getting the security cover. Tehelka journalist Aniruddha Bahal was provided security by the Congress government only a couple of years back. So by that logic, was he being rewarded for planting fake stories against Narendra Modi and Amit Shah?
Next, about tax payer’s money. For the records, Arnab is not the first journalist to get security by the government. Before him, journalists such as Zee News’s Sudhir Chaudhary (’X’ category), Samachar Plus’s Umesh Kumar (’Y’ category) and Punjab Kesari’s Ashwini Kumar Chopra (’Z Plus’ category) have been provided security by the government.
Some websites also claim that annual earnings of Arnab Goswami exceed ₹ 12 cores, so can’t he afford to pay for his security?
So by that estimation, shouldn’t Arnab pay IB for their perception too?
Yes, he can. But then the figure of his earnings made me wonder if a man earns so much, then what would be the amount of income tax he pays every year? Apparently, his income falls in highest tax slab, let’s estimate 30% of ₹ 12 cores, that is, ₹ 3.6 cores. Plus, because he falls in the super-rich category, he is liable to pay some surcharges too. What I mean to say here is that Arnab Goswami is among highest taxpayers in the county, and an eminent media personality. Why so much hue & cry if he is getting a state sponsored security cover? The nation wants to know.
According to scroll.in, Mukesh Ambani pays ₹ 15 lakh every month on a cost reimbursement basis for his Z-security. So by that figure, can’t Arnab Goswami or his employers be similarly burdened?
Well, I leave this to the government. Mumbai police, Arnab Goswami or Times Now group has not made any statement on this until the moment. But Mukesh Ambani is just one case, and the government has always provided security to non-political personalities. As I mentioned above, around 275 personalities have already got threat-based security from the state. However, in earlier cases, no one came forward expressing concerns about taxpayers’ money. Strange.
But one thing is sure, Arnab Goswami is a face of bold journalism who has the courage to practice the journalism of ‘courage’, rather than being a product of PR exercise. I may have addressed Arnab Goswami as exhibiting Shaktimaan’s likeness, but even after being a superhero, Shaktimaan too was mortal. And like Shaktimaan, Arnab Goswami is not a fictional character.
While this episode has definitely invited haters and competitors to get insecure, and irrespective of the seriousness of the matter – hater gonna hate, and wailers gonna wail.