JAIPUR: Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot alleged on Friday that the BJP and the central government it controls are suppressing the media, which only shows debates about religious polarisation while ignoring real issues. Gehlot said this expressing concern over India's ranking in the Press Freedom Index, in which the country stood at 150th spot among 180 nations.
"This demonstrates the Indian media's anguish," Gehlot tweeted, adding that the media should resist central government coercion and instead support the people. He claimed that there has been a "vicious spiral of media censorship" since Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government took power in 2014.
Gehlot said, the media is entirely controlled by the central government, the BJP, and the RSS. "There is so much fear in the media that instead of giving the truth in a fair and logical manner, the coverage is done in such a way that they do not have to face their disapproval," Gehlot added, referring to the BJP.
"People are angry now because of inflation and unemployment, but there is little discussion in the media about it. They only show debates related to religious polarisation,'' the CM said. The public will support the media once it begins to cover its issues. "Then the central government would not have the courage to restrict the media as it does now," Gehlot said.
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