JOIN USAfter judiciary, the media came on Mamata Banerjee’s line of fire when she said that a part of it has become partial and they serve their own business purpose instead of serving the people.
Quoting Municipal Affairs Minister Firhad Hakim, the chief minister said some media houses hire people, pay them Rs 50,000—Rs 1,00,000 or more and the journalists are compelled to utter lies.
“I have proof that they tell everything to serve their business interest. The employees are told to go all out in their criticism and spread canards. They don’t say anything to serve the interest of the people. In fact, I am not making these allegations against everybody but a part of the media is purchased,” Banerjee said at a meeting of the Trinamool’s youth wing, Trinamool Yuva.
“I have been told that even people can be made to lodge police complaints, and, if necessary, withdraw them at a later stage,” she said. “First, the channels give breaking news and then they wait for the contradiction. In the process, two days are gone. In the interest of business, they make guinea pigs of the political parties and the people,” Banerjee said.
Alleging that peasants’ suicides were abetted by the media, Banerjee said: “Just because you have a channel you cannot abet suicides, you cannot abet rapes. This is a criminal offence. If you can indulge in criminal offence then we also have the right to prevent it”.
Threatening to take action against the culprits, Banerjee said: “I know a lot of things and if needed, I shall bring them out. Police will lodge counter-complaints in cases built on lies. This is the system. This is the law”.
Mamata’s comments come at a time when the media has been regularly highlighting incidents of rape, police torture and administrative excesses in the state.
Referring to corruption during the tenure of the Left Front, she said that several documents pertaining to the previous regime were missing.
“Police complaints will be made and strong action taken when documents pertaining to the Left Front era are not available,” she added.
She also said that her party had never veered away from its commitment to the people and advised the party’s youth wing to use logic and argument to counter those who were misleading the people against the government on social media.
“Your most important task is to build the party’s image. Please remember that no other government in the world has been successful in making so much of development as we have done so far in our brief tenure,” she said.