New Delhi: Indian VP Shanker Dayal Sharma said that the government should provide full information to journalists and suggested that the official secrets act be amended to allow free scope for writing.
“It would be definitely useful and it is time to examine whether the act should be scrapped or amended” he said adding that the law should to put too many shackles on journalists. It is the government’s responsibility to make information available and then up to the [press to disseminate it to the public as a free press is essential to a healthy democracy.
He was speaking at a function for the “Freedom of Information” award which was being given to six eminent journalists. The winners were: H.K. Dua K.M. Mathew Aroon Purie Vijay Kumar Chopra M.V. Kamath and BG. Verghese and Kuldip Nayyar the 1990 winner.
In their acceptance speeches the awardees emphasized the crucial role that a free and fearless media played in upholding democratic values. Varghese said freedom of the press did not mean the right of the journalist editor or proprietor to information but more importantly the right of the people to know. In this the media’s role was that of an observer reporting objectively completely and fairy all that was happening. Dua said press freedom in India was due to the Indian constitution and was not the gift of any Prime Minister or Minister of Information He urged journalist to remain vigilant and said the award had only increased the responsibilities of the media. Mathew said that India was a developing democracy and it was vital that the press aided this process by drawing attention to what was good or bad for the country. Kamath’s speech referred to the problems encountered by journalists while performing their work.
He said that government was holding back information even 30 years after certain events He felt that as a general principle 25 years was plenty. Nayar said that for far too long English journalists had dominated the press scene in the country and hoped that more recognition would be given to the work done by the vernacular press.
Article extracted from this publication >> February 14, 1992
