Even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi was in Moscow to attend the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit, Lok Sabha Opposition leader and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi visited the violence-affected state of Manipur on July 8. The concurrence of the two visits resulted in an exchange of barbs between the ruling party and the Opposition on diverse platforms.
While the Opposition accused Narendra Modi of neglecting Manipur and criticised him for not visiting the violence-hit state, the ruling dispensation accused Rahul Gandhi of using the victims of Manipur for gaining political mileage. It is important to note that the Congress leader has recently assumed the role of Leader of the Opposition in the House for the first time, and has been vocal on several issues, including Manipur.
Accompanied by his colleagues and supporters, Rahul Gandhi spoke with the victims of the Manipur violence and their families. A tweet shared by the Congress leader contained a video from the relief camp, in which he stated that this was his third visit to Manipur since the violence had broken out. He urged the Prime Minister to visit the state, listen to the locals, and make an appeal for peace. Gandhi assured the victims that he would advocate for them in parliament and pressure the government to intervene in the crisis.
मणिपुर में हिंसा शुरू होने के बाद, मैं तीसरी बार यहां आ चुका हूं, मगर अफसोस स्थिति में कोई सुधार नहीं है – आज भी प्रदेश दो टुकड़ों में बंटा हुआ है।
घर जल रहे हैं, मासूम ज़िंदगियां खतरे में हैं और हज़ारों परिवार relief camp में जीवन काटने पर मजबूर हैं।
प्रधानमंत्री को मणिपुर खुद… pic.twitter.com/8EaJ2Tn6v8
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) July 11, 2024
Recently, Gandhi also visited Uttar Pradesh, where he met victims of a stampede and the mother of the late Indian Army Captain Anshuman Singh. In this case, too, his efforts to show solidarity with the victims and their families have been perceived by the ruling party as a political stunt.
Aaj Tak and other major Hindi news channels ran several tickers in live debates on Rahul Gandhi’s Manipur visit accusing him of playing politics and taking advantage of the tragedy.
Aaj Tak
As seen on the news channel Aaj Tak, BJP spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia questioned Congress, saying that Rahul Gandhi took up these visits for photo opportunities, but ran away when there was a discussion in Parliament. Anchor Anjana Om Kashyap echoed this sentiment by questioning Congress spokesperson Alok Sharma about whether Rahul’s visit came as a relief for the residents of Manipur or if it was merely for political traction.
The tickers running on the TV channel during this debate included:
- Relief for Manipur or political mileage!
- New commotion, full plan of politics!
- Who is fueling the fire in Manipur?
These tickers or were not attributed to any BJP spokesperson. In other words, there was no mention that these were allegations made by a political party. Without attribution, these appeared to be the views or questions of the channel itself.
Times Now Navbharat
On Times Now Navbharat, an anchor raised questions about the Opposition’s objections to the Prime Minister’s visit to Russia. He asked whether the Opposition was attacking the government by comparing PM Modi’s visit to Russia to Rahul Gandhi’s visit to Manipur. The anchor attempted to introduce a Hindu-Muslim spin to the debate by questioning why Rahul Gandhi was concerned about the plight of the people of Manipur, but looked the other way when it came to the suffering of “Hindu mothers and daughters in Bengal”.
The tickers running on the channel during this show included the following:
- Modi leaves for Russia, why is the Opposition miffed?
- Does Congress consider LoP Rahul as the country’s PM?
- Modi in Moscow, Rahul in Manipur, full politics on the visit?
- Why does Rahul feel so hurt by Modi’s Moscow visit?
- Third visit to Manipur in 13 months, what about West Bengal?
News 18
Anchor Aman Chopra of News 18 said that Rahul Gandhi was on a tour of Manipur and was also being praised on social media. But at the same time, questions are being asked whether Rahul has gone to Manipur to heal its wounds or to find a political opportunity? Has Rahul Gandhi gone to share the pain of the people of Manipur or has this tour of Rahul been a part of ‘violence tourism’? Chopra further stated that this question was being raised because the Prime Minister had said in Parliament that Manipur was being used for political gains. And BJP leaders had said that some people were trying to incite violence in Manipur, who could not tolerate peace. Prime Minister had said that work was being done to add fuel to the fire in Manipur, Chopra added.
The tickers running during this program included:
- Relief for Manipur or an opportunity?
- Was Rahul’s visit a political opportunity?
The statements in the tickers were not present as allegations by the BJP.
On July 8, in a live between Congress spokesperson Alok Sharma and Aaj Tak anchor Anjana Om Kashyap, Sharma accused Aaj Tak of playing politics and misrepresenting Rahul Gandhi’s Manipur visit. In response, the anchor said that this was the BJP’s allegation but the channel was not sending such a message so they had removed a ticker. The ticker read, ‘ Who is adding fuel to the fire in Manipur?
BREAKING 🚨
Alok Sharma, Senior Spokesperson of Congress Party was involved in a heated debate with Anjana Om Kashyap.Just Watch the counter argument of Alok Sharma 🔥 👇 pic.twitter.com/anvRrINbx8
— Saibpal Pandit (@PanditSaibpal) July 8, 2024
It is worth noting that the ruling party’s questioning of Rahul Gandhi’s visit to Manipur was echoed by these news channels, and the charges brought by the BJP were presented as the opinion of the media outlet without any attribution. Generally, taking the questions of the Opposition to the ruling party is considered a duty the media; in this case, it was the opposite. For instance, the BJP questioned why Rahul Gandhi did not visit West Bengal if he was so concerned about the victims. The mainstream media echoed this question, blurring the distinction between the role of a political party and that of a media outlet. Not stopping at that, an anchor on Navbharat Times communalised the issue by bringing in the Hindu angle.
The tickers used in these bulletins were particularly problematic as the channels did not specify where those statements had come from. Using statements without quotes or attribution and passing them off as news is unethical. Attributing a quote to whoever it came from is one of the basic lessons of journalism that was ignored in these shows.
The post Rahul Gandhi in Manipur: Hindi news channels presented BJP’s charges of politicking as their own editorial stance appeared first on Alt News.
This content originally appeared on Alt News and was authored by Abhishek Kumar.
Abhishek Kumar | Radio Free (2024-07-18T13:01:00+00:00) Rahul Gandhi in Manipur: Hindi news channels presented BJP’s charges of politicking as their own editorial stance. Retrieved from https://www.radiofree.org/2024/07/18/rahul-gandhi-in-manipur-hindi-news-channels-presented-bjps-charges-of-politicking-as-their-own-editorial-stance/
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