Raids in Delhi – India’s leader Modi seeks revenge against the BBC – News


Contents

It looks as if the Hindu nationalist government of Narendra Modi is launching a vendetta against the British broadcaster BBC.

Modi apparently resents the BBC for blaming him (citing a government report) for the bloody riots in the state of Gujarat a good 20 years ago. At that time more than 1000 people died – mostly Muslims. Prime Minister of Gujarat was Narendra Modi. India’s highest court acquitted him for lack of evidence. But after the BBC documentary, the debate flared up again.

The current Prime Minister reacted with all severity: Citing emergency law, his government banned Twitter and YouTube from publishing excerpts from the BBC series. The documentation is hostile propaganda and anti-Indian garbage. At the time, the opposition spoke of censorship. The Supreme Court also disapproved of the ban.

Critics see India’s democracy in danger

Modi, head of government of the self-promotional “largest democracy in the world”, obviously has a problem with free media. Other critical publications such as the Internet newspaper The Quint and Newslaundry have already received visits from tax auditors, as have NGOs such as Oxfam India. With the BBC, it is now the first time that a powerful foreign medium has been hit. It should probably be understood as a warning shot.

In any case, the BBC said it would cooperate fully and hope to get the matter resolved soon. But even if the tax auditors don’t find anything in the end, there is a risk that the journalists will think even more carefully about what they are going to publish with the next report. And that is exactly the goal.

Criticism of the procedure came today not only from the opposition, but also from the Indian Publishers Association, which sees constitutional democracy in danger.

Shot could backfire

But Modi seems to accept that: In the year of India’s G20 presidency, which Modi is turning into a year-round India show, and a year before the next national election, he doesn’t need any criticism. Nothing should get in the way of the grand plan to give India and its Prime Minister a growing role on the world stage.

But the attempt to silence unwelcome reporters could fail. After the BBC series was banned from Twitter and YouTube, illegal copies became even more widespread on social media – and the thin-skinned reaction of the head of government was even more discussed.

source site-72