The Pinarayi Vijayan-led State government is a carbon copy of the Narendra Modi-led government at the Centre which thrives on intimidatory tactics and bullying, the Leader of the Opposition, V.D. Satheesan, on Friday said.
The notice issued to media by the Legislative Secretariat for their filming of the acrimonious scenes in front of the office of the Assembly Speaker is unilateral and condemnable and should be seen as an attempt to threaten and subjugate media, he said in a statement here on Friday.
The private assistants of eight MLAs of the Opposition were also issued notices regarding filming of the agitation. The staff members of Ministers and ruling party MLAs had also filmed the scenes of agitation in front of the Speaker’s office and have promoted it widely on social media. Did the Legislative Secretariat wilfully forget to issue notices to them too or was it too scared of the Chief Minister, Mr. Satheesan asked.
“It is the same Chief Minister and his cronies who make themselves hoarse about upholding media freedom who are trying to limit media freedom. The CM and the Government are scared of the media and those who critique them, and this is the reason the Sabha TV, which is expected to hold a mirror to the Assembly proceedings for the public, has been reduced to a mere appendage of the Government,” Mr. Satheesan said.
He said that if the Opposition’s protests are being ignored by Sabha TV. The visuals would be filmed for the rest of the world to see even if it results in a violation of the law.
The government and the Legislative Secretariat should quit threatening the Opposition and the media, who will not succumb to intimidation, he added
