There is no better way to describe Indian news channels’ coverage of the India-China military encounter of 9 December in Tawang than in their own words.
It was all superlative — praise for the Indian Army and contempt for the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) of China. Sample some of the descriptions: The ‘devious dragon’s design’ was ‘defeated’, China ‘humiliated’ (India Today), ‘China dares India repels’ (CNN News 18), Chinese forces ‘bashed black & blue’ so severely, they were ‘pulverised’ (Times Now). And some more: ‘Bashed, thrashed, kicked’ (India Today), the ‘cowardly’ Chinese got ‘a bloody nose’ from ‘Bharat’s Brave’ (NDTV24x7) and retreated ‘grovelling’ (India Today). China ‘caught off-guard’, declared NewsX, when 300 ‘heavily prepared’ PLA soldiers with ‘spiked clubs’ were ‘foiled’ by the Indian Army at 3 am.
In other words, ‘Hind ka Bahubalis’ with their ‘bone-crushing bravery’ ensured that when ‘China aaya’, India ‘ne maar bhagaya’ (ABP News).
Suiting action to words, news channels cut to a ‘viral’ video — which none could verify but all aired it nevertheless — showing ‘Indian’ troops beating ‘Chinese’ soldiers with sticks and celebrating their prowess. The video was shot in broad daylight, while the Tawang skirmish occurred at 3 am.
Hmmmm…
Oh well, let’s not dwell on these niceties. Rather, listen to the sound of India’s ‘resounding slap’ that will be heard in Beijing, according to a Times Now Navbharat anchor. Not just that, the end was nigh: ‘After Tawang, Taiwan is ready’ to repulse the ‘shaitaan’ Chinese, he added.
And in case you thought otherwise, injuries on the Chinese side were far more than on the Indian, insisted CNN-News18. Similar headlines and reports occupied news space from Monday night into most of Tuesday.
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A rude interruption
Alas, the exploits of India’s ‘bravehearts’ against China were often and rather rudely interrupted by Union Home Minister Amit Shah who delivered his own telling blows: ‘Shah slams…Shah strikes…’, ‘Shah ka hamla,’ announced Republic TV and News18 India as you imagined Amit Shah in khakee fatigues advancing menacingly toward the Chinese.
Except he wasn’t attacking the Chinese at all — his target was the Congress and the Gandhis. Many news channels were happy to take his lead and broadcast his broadside on the opposition party throughout the day, diminishing the importance of China’s incursions into Indian territory.
Anchors across news channels called upon the political class to be united against this common ‘enemy’ (Times Now Navbharat), but even their own reporters and headline writers weren’t listening to them. Amit Shah alleged that Congress had disrupted the Question Hour in Parliament because it didn’t want a question on the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation to come up. And news channels sprinted with the story — they repeated the home minister’s five questions to the Congress with headlines such as ‘Shah gives it back to Congress’ (Republic TV).
The stories that followed were provocative—during the 2020 Galwan clash, the Congress ‘dined’ with the Chinese, alleged CNN-News18 without any evidence basing its entire report on Shah’s comments. The home minister ‘held a mirror to the Congress’, claimed a Republic TV anchor, detailing Shah’s allegations of the Chinese funding the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation. India Today picked up the minister’s comment that due to Jawaharlal Nehru, India was denied a permanent seat in the United Nations Security Council.
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‘Politics’ over Army courage
Hindi and English news channels dwelt on how the Congress had been ‘cornered on their history’ with Beijing (Republic TV) and contrasted it with the courage of the current Indian forces who had ‘thwarted’ China’s ambitions: ‘Can anyone say this of India in 1962?’ asked Times Now, referring to the 1962 India-China war, which saw India, under Nehru, concede considerable ground to the Chinese. ‘Govt gives it back to Army baiters,’ announced Republic TV triumphantly, with all the pomp of a famous victory. ‘Why is there politics over the courage of the Army?’ asked Aaj Tak.
Hallo, hallo, hallo – what do we have here? So far, there had been no mention of ‘Army baiters’ on news channels, and the ‘politics’ in Parliament wasn’t about the Army’s role but the Opposition’s criticism of the Narendra Modi government on the repeated Chinese attacks. According to this (dangerous) narrative peddled by news channels, anyone who questions the Centre on its policies toward China is questioning the valour of the Indian armed forces. Huh?
It’s decidedly odd that the home minister’s salvo against the Congress received more attention than what exactly happened in Tawang. Why were news channels diverting attention from what they themselves categorised as a ‘defeat of the dragon’? Was it because they were short on information about the details of the clash or were they simply echoing the home minister’s voice? Either way, the coverage of the Congress ‘angle’, which had nothing to do with the border stand-off, was like a fly — an irritating distraction.
Especially when there are much weightier matters at hand such as calls for all-out aggression against China. Former military professionals, now ‘strategic experts’ like Major General G.D. Bakshi (retd), advocated a strong Indian response to the Chinese intrusions — take the battle to them and into their territory, he and others urged on Times Now Navbharat. Remember the saying ‘Be careful what you wish for’?
Finally, about the ground reports from Tawang after TV news correspondents rushed there — most could not contain their excitement. ‘See this, see this,’ gasped the News18 India reporter, pointing to a military truck that passed her on a mountain road, ‘The Army is on the move.’
Nothing to match the Times Now Navbharat reporter who said that the local population was backing India all the way. To illustrate the point, we saw a video of him at a local school where he constantly orders the schoolchildren: ‘Say it again, say it again,’ and the students, mindful of being on camera, dutifully shout, ‘Bharat Mata ki Jai!’
Really?
(Edited by Humra Laeeq)