People's Democracy

(Weekly Organ of the Communist Party of India (Marxist)

Vol. XXV

No. 19

May 13,2001

Who is Afraid of Press Council

Shailendra Kumar

THE Tehelka thunder has indeed created a storm in the government, and the media are now the target. The immediate targets are the Press Council of India and its chairman, Mr P B Sawant. A flashback: The Press Council was scrapped after the proclamation of Emergency in 1975 too.

Today, as the Press Council awaits notification, like the witches of Macbeth who chanted "Hail Macbeth, Hail!", it is "Hail Media Council, Hail!" as far as the government is concerned. They are getting set to scrap the Press Council. Since February end the list for Press Council notification is pending with the government. The intentions are very clear --- the new Press Council, sent for notification, has many new faces and many pro-government ‘buddies’ are missing.

No only this; Tehelka.com is now high security category. It has to be ‘protected’ by the police (and observed) because, suddenly, the ISI is said to be allegedly ‘targeting’ it. A new watchdog like Media Council, with a pliable chairman, can keep a thorough watch on such dot coms too.

First the facts: listen to the voice of Ms Sushma Swaraj, the information and broadcasting minister, in her letter to the Press Council chairman. The letter is self-explanatory. It states ---

"I have given a hearing to the representative bodies of the various segments of the print media to elicit their views on the subject. Almost all the organisations consulted so far have expressed dissatisfaction with the present provision of draw of lots, and the fact that, at present, the council is largely Delhi-based. There is a need to emphasise and ensure the all-India character of the council. There also appears to be opinion in favour of greater parity in the representation between journalists and proprietors. Some organisations have also highlighted their apprehensions about the procedure for recognition/derecognition.

"I understand that the council has already started the process of reconstituting the Press Council. Keeping in mind the misgivings expressed about the present procedure for nomination, you may consider placing issues relating to composition and procedure of nomination of members before the full council at the earliest and before further progressing the process of inviting nominations. In case a consensus regarding changes emerges, the council may also like to consider whether the process of nominating members to the PCI that has been initiated should be kept on hold until the changes agreed upon are carried through by necessary legislation/amendment in the rules/regulations."

The operative part of Sawant’s reply makes it clear ---

"…… the tenure of the present council ends on the March 27, 2001 according to section 6(1) of the act. Hence the process of the reconstitution of the council has to be completed before the date. The process has started according to the present provisions of the act and the rules made thereunder, and the recognition and derecognition of the organisations concerned has been completed by the full council in its meeting held on the January 24, 2001. The decisions of the council has been unanimous in recognising and derecognising the organisations which is done according to the provisions of the act, the rules and the criteria laid down by the council itself. The reorganised organisations have been notified in the gazette, on January 25, 2001 a copy of which is annexed. As required, letters have been addressed to the recognised organisation on the same day, i e, on January 25, 2001, to send their respective panel of nominees, as required by section 5(4) of the act, on or before February 28, 2001. After the names of the nominees are received, they will be scrutinised to find out if they satisfy the legal criteria and, thereafter, the nominations will be finalised before March 27, 2001."

Since then all the formalities have been over well before time. It is very clear that the government, that is the information and broadcasting ministry, has received the final list for notification. It is also very clear that in the process of nominations the National Union of Journalists of India (NUJI) which banded together with the Indian Federation of Working Journalists (IFWJ) lost the race for the Press Council to a combination of the Indian Journalists Union (IJU), the Press Association of India, and the photographers combine. Just as others failed in the past, this time their combination could not make it, and that was not liked by the government. So the game began to kill the Press Council and bring out from government shelves the plans for a Media Council. The government writes to the Press Council chairman, the Press Council chairman replies, and the national English newspapers which hardly ever carried the Press Council decisions start a tirade against the council and specifically its chairman. They now talk of their own watchdogs.

Secondly, move intriguing is the response of the BJP, not form ‘usually’ reliable sources but from their own mouthpiece. BJP Today, dated May 1-15, said that "fortunately" Smt Sushma Swaraj has clarified that, as of now, no Media Council bill has been drafted. The impression that there is a draft ready was created because Justice Sawant had drafted his suggestions about what the Media Council should be. As far as the ministry is concerned, only the concept paper is under preparation.

It is very clear that a concept paper is being prepared by the government. It is further clear that there has been no all-India debate on the subject. Recently, after the Press Council list was finalised, a meeting was held with some leaders. No paper was circulated but a Media Council was discussed, even as the Press Council modification was there pending clearance for the last two months. Clearly, an attempt was made to storm through, carry on with the idea of a Media Council and kill the Press Council. For the past one month, a campaign is on in Hindustan Times, a national English daily that is generally against the Press Council and its chairman. The campaign is egged on by ‘big guns’ in The Times of India.

Why are the Press Council and its chairman under attack? And why only in a section of the press? Even a cursory look at the Press Council of India’s reports during Sawant’s tenure reveals that at least one of these papers (TOI) was virtually censored for making a mockery of the institution of editor. (See the Nav Bharat Times and TOI cases.) It was also in this period that contract labour employment among journalists, possibly impinging on press freedom, was discussed. It was in this period, again, that the pluralistic character of the media was also spotlighted and the issue of psephology and elections discussed along with guidelines on pre-poll predictions. In his correspondence with the International Press Institute, which shot to notoriety in the 1960s and 1970s as a CIA conduit, the Press Council of India chairman told the IPI not to sermonise to the chairman or the council. With its limited authority, it is the Press Council of India which showed that the press is something more than market economy. It also talked of newspaper trusts and cooperatives and, with all its limitations, made some defence for regional, small and medium paper journalists and gave them a wee bit of dignity.

A continuous charge is that nobody is afraid of the Press Council and that it has no teeth. But, then, some moral authority is exercised by it though some editors with or without portfolio have now jumped into the Press Council bashing because they or their papers had got a ticking off. Regarding the Media Council, from veteran journalists Mr Kuldeep Nayyar to the Press Council chairman to many journalist organisations and even the All India Newspapers Employees Federation have all lent their voice to the Media Council. All this was buried in the ministry for over two years. Suddenly, to kill the Press Council because some government buddies have failed to get nominated, they have suddenly revived the demand to get a pliable Media Council and if possible a pliable chairman. Now, after having captured the ICHR, NCERT and several other educational institutions and after having a pliable UGC chairman, the saffron brigade is fighting its battle to control the media.