Union Minister Smriti Irani has been one of the favorite targets of the left-liberal establishment. The ‘progressive brigade’ has often made blatantly sexist remarks against the BJP leader and has often spread fake news about her.
In another vicious, hate-filled and sexist remark against Smriti Irani, the Telegraph published an article with this headline:
However, the headline is not only misleading and wildly inaccurate but also intentionally distorts the statement Smriti Irani made.
In a recent visit to Amethi, Union minister Smriti Irani attacked Rahul Gandhi and said, “(BJP) ke adhyaksh apne purusharth se bane hain; Rahul Gandhi apni mata ke ashirwad se Congress ke adhyaksh bane hain”. Here, the Cabinet minister used the term Purusharth, a core concept in Hindu philosophy which means, according to Hindu scriptures, purpose or meaning of life including “Dharma” i.e. religion, “Artha” i.e. wealth, “Kama” i.e. desire and “Moksha” i.e. salvation. But the “Light House of Knowledge” translated it as “The BJP president earned his post through his manhood, Rahul got his thanks to his mother’s blessings”, without realizing the sexist remark it represents. In fact, by most Sanskrit scholars, the term Purush has been interpreted as a stand-in for Human irrespective of gender. So, it is very clear that the Telegraph not only distorted the meaning of a core Dharmic concept but also made it sexist, just to target Smriti Irani.
Smriti Irani has always been a target for the Kolkata-based newspaper. In 2016, the Telegraph, in its headline, mocked the Union Minister and called her “Aunty-National”. The newspaper headline faced strong reaction from the social media with many tweets accusing it as a “Leftist” mouthpiece, working in collusion with the Left and Congress.
In terms of sexist or anti-national remarks, The Telegraph is a repeat offender. A few days ago, it had equated the devotees of Bhagwan Ayyappa with the stone pelters in the Kashmir valley. It goes on to show the anti-Hindu editorial line of the newspaper and soft-corner for radical Islamists. Even the leading journalists of India called out ‘The Telegraph’ for their ‘journalism’. Adityaraj Kaul, the journalist at Republic, tweeted, “Journalism is going down the drain every passing day. In Kashmir, stone pelters are defending Pakistan sponsored terrorists who kill innocent Kashmiris and brave forces. However, in Sabarimala, it’s an issue of worship. No terror. No external pressure. No guns blazing. Grow up!”
In another instance, the parent organization of ABP, the AnandBazar Patrika removed the owner of the newspaper Avik Sarkar in the same fashion. Patrika, a Bengali language newspaper and The Telegraph an English language newspaper are very popular in West Bengal and both are owned ABP group. The Ananabazar Partika and The Telegraph criticized the Mamata Banerjee government heavily before the 2016 assembly election. Mamata government did not like the negative coverage of her government and spoke against it in a public rally. After Mamata Banerjee got re-elected, the newspaper removed the owner and editor-in-chief, Avik Sarkar and installed his brother Arup Sarkar to the post to appease the Mamata government. The Telegraph time and again bolsters the notion that its absurdity and idiocy have no limits.
It seems that cover-ups and appeasement come naturally to the Telegraph. Unfortunately, just because of despicable acts like these, the profession of journalism has been perceived as abuse. Such kind of journalism is pathetic, to say the least.