Sir,
What does the movie’ City of Joy’, Punjab and Bofors gun scandal has in common? In all three cases the central or state governments had interfered with the media in exposing the truth and concealing the evidence to Indians and people around the world, In all three cases the excuse given was the same: India’s unity is being threatened. Is it really the Indian unity which is being threatened or the jobs and assets of politicians and government officials who have amassed millions of rupees worth of wealth through fraudulent means which is being threatened? If Indian unity is so fragile that the country will disintegrate by exposing stark realities and human right violations where even people like X-justice Bains can be arrested, humiliated & tortured on fake terrorism charges & Col. Pratap Singh for writing a book called “Khalistan the only solution for Punjab,” then one wonders should India have been united in the first place. Has the foundation of India been built on strong principles of (Satyam Shivam. Sun dram) freedom of speech and expression or on house of cards, where the country can come tumbling down by exposing corruption, police excesses or poverty? The world got unlimited coverage to the recent riots in L.A. where 48 people were killed, thousands injured & thousands arrested. The US did not come tumbling down because the realities of white police excesses against blacks were exposed, by the predominantly white media. Similarly what has India to fear by blocking news or putting barriers in the way of people wanting to expose the truth about Indian problems? Rather the Indian government has become one of India’s biggest enemy by creating suspicion in the minds of its people and the world by crushing freedom and controlling the media and saying all is well and Indian unity is intact, Harbir Singh Mahwah, NJ
Article extracted from this publication >> May 22, 1992
