It is said, whoever controls the media, controls the minds of the public. The media industry is responsible for presenting facts to the public. A country with a strong unbiased media is a country free from deceptive thoughts, but lately Indian media is moving away from its ideals. After the judiciary, the profession which is expected to be the unbiased is that of journalists. Ravish Kumar is known as an important political journalist but he has been seen violating basic media ethics through his presence in the latest BSP rally which is proof to his biasedness.
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Only two phases of elections are left and hence the fervor around political campaigns by the various political leaders is peaking. In Uttar Pradesh, the Mahagathbandhan is trying its best to garner votes from its voter base. Akhilesh Yadav and Mayawati were seen in Jonpur on Tuesday, addressing the rally ahead of the 6th phase of elections. It is expected that the BSP-SP army should be present with full force for the rally. However, what surprised many was the presence of Ravish Kumar. While Akhilesh Yadav was addressing the crowd, Ravish Kumar was spotted standing behind Mayawati on the stage. There has been no news of Kumar joining the BSP-SP party, it is therefore necessary to ponder the reasons for his presence at such close proximity with the leaders in a rally.
The presence of media personnel in rallies by politicians is not a big deal, as they choose to attend such rallies in order to cover them for their respective media houses. Yet, we are aware that for such convenience the journalists are provided a proper designated area. Journalists are only allowed to cover the rally and they are neither allowed to reach the podium to speak, nor are they invited on stage. Questions can be raised about how Ravish Kumar managed to get stage presence. Kumar must be special to have been hosted right on the stage during the rally.
In his defence, Ravish Kumar said that he was only there to take down points from the speeches that the two leaders would give and record the response of the public. This is a feeble attempt to cover his dedication to the Mahagathbandhan, since this could have been done even from the designated media space at the rally. This is clear proof that Ravish was a participant in the rally rather than a neutral reporter.
Ravish Kumar is well known for his strong criticism of PM Modi and the ruling NDA government. He was subtle in his partisanship before this incident, but now he does not care for subtlety anymore. He has shown his support for the Mahagathbandhan openly. His recent road show also involved an interview of Akhilesh Yadav in his private jet, when the SP chief was travelling to Gorakhpur for campaigning. The safe questions asked in the interview showed Ravish Kumar’s dedication towards the agenda of the Mahagathbandhan. Hence, it becomes imperative to ask if Ravish Kumar has finally joined the Mahagathbandhan. If not, then will Mahagathbandhan leaders provide the same stage space to journalists like Arnab Goswami and Surjit Chaudhary?