JOIN USIrked over criticism by journalists on the sit-in against the police and late night raids, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders on Saturday slammed media persons and accused them of doing “biased reporting”.
Ahead of Republic Day celebrations, Delhi Law Minister Somnath Bharti triggered off another controversy as he accused a TV journalist of taking money from Bharatiya Janata Party’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi.
When a journalist repeatedly asked about the notice of women’s commission over his late night raids, he asked, “How much money did you get from Modi (Narendra Modi) for asking this?” His remarks drew flak from all political parties. The BJP demanded the immediate resignation of the law minister.
“The behaviour of Delhi’s law minister clearly indicates that this government has no respect for free media. It is the duty of the media to raise questions against issues, it cannot be blamed for taking someone’s favour,” Leader of Opposition in Delhi Assembly Harsh Vardhan said.
However, after realising that all the artilleries of the media and opposition were pointed at him for his remarks, Bharti retracted from his statement claiming that “it was wrongly interpreted”. Asked about his minister’s statement on media, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal also said that his comments were inappropriate. Kejriwal, however, maintained that media is biased against the AAP.
After taking salute on Republic Day celebrations in the city, he slammed media houses for reporting against his party.