New Delhi: Although elections continued to dominate headlines in the Urdu press this week, the sexual harassment allegation against West Bengal Governor C.V. Ananda Bose also received significant coverage. An editorial in the prominent Urdu paper Roznama Rashtriya Sahara questioned if impartial investigation was possible in the case.
Earlier this month, a woman claiming to be a temporary staff member at the West Bengal Raj Bhavan had approached the state police accusing Bose, a former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader, of molesting her.
Bose’s office has called the allegation an “engineered narrative”.
Remarking on how the BJP had “raked up” the alleged sexual harassment cases at West Bengal’s Sandeshkhali in February, the Sahara editorial questioned how the allegation against Bose would be tackled given the immunity that the Constitution accords to serving governors.
Article 361 of the Constitution grants immunity to a governor in any criminal proceedings until he’s in office.
“How will the complaint be addressed, how will the truth come out, and how will it be shown that no one is above the law? How will all citizens get equal justice under the law? What happened to the security provided by the Constitution?” the editorial asks.
Besides this, editorials also questioned the Election Commission of India’s delay in releasing voter turnout data and worried about hate speeches.
Here’s a roundup of all the news that created a buzz in the Urdu press this week.
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Elections
Elections continued to dominate news headlines in all three Urdu newspapers — Sahara, Siasat and Inquilab — with all three voicing concerns about the EC’s delay in releasing data on voter turnout in the first two phases of the Lok Sabha polls.
The final data for the first phase of polling on 19 April was published after 11 days and the second phase on 26 April after four days. The delay in releasing the final numbers has led the election reforms non-profit Association of Democratic Reforms to file a petition in the Supreme Court.
In its editorial on 9 May, Inquilab said the concerns about the unusual delay on the EC’s part to release the data were valid.
In its 8 May editorial, the same newspaper debated reasons for the declining voter turnout in the ongoing election. The editorial — titled ‘Where are the answers?’ — noted a lack of enthusiasm for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s speeches, saying there was little public discussion about them. “Even his staunch supporters seem uninspired,” it said. “This raises questions about the declining voter turnout in the first two phases, indicating a disconnect between Modi’s rallies and voter engagement. The underlying question is: why did this situation arise?’
Sahara, in its 8 May editorial, spoke about the need for the EC to remain independent. Only the EC can ensure free and fair elections, and for this, it must stay away from politics, the editorial said.
“The Election Commission is a crucial link in the country’s democratic process,” it said. “It should not behave like a political rival. Meanwhile, political parties should stay within the limits set by the EC to maintain transparency and impartiality (in elections),” the editorial said.
On 7 May — the day of the third phase of polling — the same newspaper hoped that the election panel would speedily release voter turnout data for this phase to ensure that there are no questions in the voters’ minds, “such as whether it takes a lot of time for machines to report voter turnout”.
The same editorial, however, also praised the election panel, saying it “leaves no stone unturned” in demonstrating its excellence in conducting elections.
But delay in releasing voter turnout data isn’t the only topic that concerned the Urdu press. Editorials also weighed election speeches by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah.
While Modi has vowed to ensure there’s no “religion-based reservation” — repeatedly claiming that he “will not let reservations for Dalits, Adivasis, and OBCs be given to Muslims” — Shah has promised to “scrap Muslim reservation” if it returns to power.
Sahara’s 6 May voiced concerns about how political parties continue to make such speeches despite EC’s explicit instructions to desist from them.
Muslims, this editorial said, are being unnecessarily targeted during election campaigns. Meanwhile, leaders giving such speeches are not interested in issues that concern the public.
“No one is thinking about the message that such politics of hatred gives to society,” it said.
Siasat too voiced concern about the rising hate speeches. The home minister, this editorial said, took the problem “a step further” when he said that the reservation for “Dalits and Adivasis wouldn’t be divided among Muslims”.
Currently, some states like Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, and Karnataka give reservations to Muslims. According to the Siasat editorial, this reservation is based on their “economic, educational, political, and social backwardness”.
“The main objective (of these speeches) is to incite hatred in society,” the editorial said. “Similarly, it is now being claimed (by some sections) that if Congress is voted to power, a Muslim government will be established. This is the BJP’s doing. It’s the result of (the party’s) anxiety, borne out of its fear of public protest.”
Siasat’s 10 May editorial, meanwhile, weighed in on a letter that former Supreme Court judge Madan B. Lokur, former Delhi High Court Chief Justice A.P. Shah, and senior journalist N. Ram have written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. The letter invites the two leaders to a public debate.
The Siasat editorial compares the attitudes of the two leaders towards the media.
“There’s not been a single instance in the last 10 years when the prime minister has engaged the media in a dialogue,” the editorial said. “While he has answered some (BJP) workers’ questions on whether he eats the common man’s food, he has never responded to public concerns.”
On the other hand, Rahul frequently interacts with the media, often attending press conferences and addressing media queries, it said.
Modi’s comments on Ambani and Adani
In its editorial on 10 May, Sahara Roznama criticised Modi’s remarks linking Rahul Gandhi with business tycoons Mukesh Ambani and Gautam Adani.
In his speech at an election meeting in Telangana’s Vemulawada, Modi claimed that the Congress leader had stopped criticising Ambani and Adani before the Lok Sabha polls because of a “possible secret deal”.
Modi’s act of naming the two industrialists — who have frequently been linked with himself in the past — “has confused the public”, the editorial said.
“They don’t understand which side the prime minister is on,” the editorial said. “Is he accusing Rahul Gandhi of corruption? Or does he doubt the ‘blessings’ of his patrons?”
Rahul Gandhi has repeatedly questioned Modi’s relationship with Adani but has always been met with silence, it said.
“On the contrary, he (the prime minister) continued to prove his relationship through his actions while his Cabinet came forward to answer the questions that were being raised on the substantial growth of Adani’s wealth,” it said.
Haryana crisis
Siasat’s 9 May editorial discussed the political crisis that has crept up on the state’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government led by Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini.
Significantly, three independents have withdrawn their support, reducing the Saini government to a minority.
According to the Siasat editorial, the situation appears precarious for the BJP, which, in March, replaced its then-chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar to beat anti-incumbency.
“Under the current circumstances, the BJP could resort to various strategies and tactics to retain power (in the state), even if it means stretching the limits of democracy. BJP prioritises power over democracy, and is willing to go to any extent (for this),” the editorial said.
(Edited by Uttara Ramaswamy)
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