The space for independent journalism and debates is fast shrinking under the Bharatiya Janata Party-led NDA government at the Centre, several eminent social activists, academicians and artists noted here on Tuesday.
“We are witnessing market censorship and it is difficult to get objective television coverage,” said documentary film maker Anand Patwardhan while accusing the BJP of trying to implement its idea of cultural dominance through power.
Mr. Patwardhan’s reference was to the overtaking of media firms by various corporate giants. “The media is not telling us what is happening in the world. Media is completely silent. The government knows that it can stay in power through censorship,” he said in the background of the government denying Parliament a discussion on the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict.
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The autonomy of the media was high on the list of concerns of many eminent personalities who spoke at the “round table on the “Idea of India” held in Mumbai.
Father Frazer Mascarenhas, principal of St Xavier’s College, Mumbai, said that the space for “democratic dialogue” was decreasing under the new regime.
Social activist Teesta Setalvad said after the coming of the new government the right-wing ideology was infiltrating into the institutional frameworks of the country.
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Senior journalists Harsh Mander, Dilip D’souza, Daryll D’Monte, actors Nandita Das and Dolly Thakore, directors Mahesh Bhatt and Saeed Mirza also expressed their concerns at the gathering.