New Delhi: The Editors Guild of India and DIGIPUB has expressed deep shock at and condemned the recent blocking of the Tamil magazine web portal Vikatan.com, without adherence to due process by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) over the publication of a cartoon depicting prime minister Narendra Modi.
The website became inaccessible soon after the Tamil Nadu cadre of the Bharatiya Janata Party took exception to a cartoon published on February 10, showing Modi sitting shackled next to US President Donald Trump.
Editors Guild
“Cartoons have always been a legitimate means of journalistic endeavour and the sudden blocking of the Vikatan website is a brazen instance of overreach by the authorities,” the guild said.
The statement is signed by guild president Anant Nath, general secretary Ruben Banerjee and treasurer K Ve Prasad.
“What is more deplorable is the abrupt manner in which access to the entire web portal was blocked, purportedly, after the state head of a political party complained to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB), against the said cartoon. No prior notices were issued and no opportunity was given to Ananda Vikatan – the group behind the web portal – for a fair hearing,” it said.
The Editors Guild said that it was also appalled to learn that after the website was blocked, a notice was sent to the publishers, calling them for a hearing by an Inter-Departmental Committee constituted under the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 (IT Rules 2021), to consider the request for blocking. “In a manner of speaking, after an order was arbitrarily implemented, due process was initiated,” the guild noted.
The guild sought to note that there is already a stay by the Bombay high court, on Rule 9(1) and (3) of the IT Rules 2021, which pertains to the Code of Ethics, and therefore limiting the powers of the Inter-Departmental Committee to examine complaints against publishers on these grounds.
“The entire episode smacks of high-handedness and militates against the cherished ideals of a free press. The blocking of the website, coming amid growing concerns over media freedom in the country, does no good to India’s democratic traditions that value fair play and transparency,” it said.
The guild also said it was saddened to learn that the cartoonist behind the work has been subjected to harsh trolling on social media, as well as death threats.
It called on the MeitY to roll back the blocking order and ensure that it is “never guided by any arbitrariness when dealing with free speech and expression.”
DIGIPUB condemns government interference
DIGIPUB, a joint body of digital news organisations, has condemned the government’s harassment of Vikatan.
“As Vikatan has explained, the cartoon was a commentary on India’s silence in the face of the inhumane and possibly illegal manner in which the United States government has deported Indian citizens back to India in handcuffs and shackles this month,” it said.
Criticising the government of the day, “whether with words, photos, or cartoons, is the cornerstone of any democracy that is actually functioning in letter and spirit,” the body said.
“Touchiness and intolerance to criticism betray deep insecurity, immaturity, and hollowness within the government, the ruling party, and its leaders,” it added.
DIGIPUB added a plea to the government to stop attacking freedom of speech and expression, allow journalism to thrive, and serve its purpose of informing the public, “even when it means questioning the government and communicating its failings.”
An uncritical media is merely a mouthpiece and of no public value, it said, calling on the government to cease further harassment of Vikatan and any other media website criticising its policies and actions.
Note: This article has been updated with DIGIPUB’s reaction.
