DEMOCRACY, PUBLIC CONSCIENCE: FOSTERING ALTERNATIVE MEDIA SPACES

Syed Azharuddin began his welcome address remarking the role of media in the ideal democratic imagination. The Indian media becomes a centre for misinterpretation running away from the principles of the fourth pillar of democracy. In such turning of the development, we ourselves should become the media utilising social media. Social media is an alternative space for the people at the present. He cited Kanganj violence as an instance where it went unreported prior to the alive social media vibe and discussions. Indian media is known for its marginalisation of the voices of the minorities.

Amit Sengupta (Senior Editor, Tehelka)

The senior journalist of a popular media house, Tehelka initiated his mind-blowing discussions pointing to the instance of the murder of a mentally challenged Adivasi youth, remembering the barbarianism of Roman times. The positive development, when contrasted to the burning news from other parts of India, is that the state government of Kerala, popular film icons, human rights activists and cultural community widely condemned the issue. This when compared to the recurring instance of right-wing violence- attack to Fayisa and students at a seminar in Ramjas College in Delhi University from ABVP to the graver lynching of Pehle Khan. In the case of the murder of Pehlu Khan, four of the accused have already been discharged from police custody by Rajasthan Police. This is same as the case of Akhlaq and Junaid. He also recalled Una incident where Dalits were lynched for selling the skin of a cow, their way of livelihood ‘allowed’ by castiest norms. While the civil society and administration of Kerala falls in condemnation in the incident, the Prime Minister had often silence over the same. The PM never visited the kin of the victims, and never uttered a sold on it.This spectre of fascism is following one after the another. Hate politics creates one fatigue after another when people silently wait for another attack on the secular fabric of the nation. This can be likened to the Hitler’s times when the soldiers in the concentration camps in then Germany went ahead with family picnics after murdering innocent children. Hindutva fanatics glorify murder, lynching, share the video grabs of such grave cruelty in social media spaces. The ABVP blocked national flag hoisting done in the memory of Veer Havildar Abdul Hameed, Indo-Pak war of 1965 veteran in Kasganj while media portrayed that Muslims, the very organisers of the event blocks from hoisting the flag. Angshukanta Chakraborty, a journalist from India Today was asked to resign after she tweeted against such hate mongering fake-news. They are hopefully a few journalists who dared to question their own institution for question fake news released by their own working channel.

No mainstream traditional media covered the news that Jay Shah’s profit increased by 16,000 times while the alternative, social media turned to it a solid talk of the town. Despite blanketing the mainstream media houses of the nation by fear and censure, news and information have continuously spread to the people without any pause. “Right-wing political parties claim themselves that they do respect the Constitution, but I don’t believe,” he said. The saffron wing has never taken part in freedom struggle but only worked to divide the nation in the name of religion”. In analysing the changing equations of the media, he wondered that when “national media crawls, while social media takes on power”.

Questions are remaining in the air on the mysterious death of Judge Loya, when only The Caravan, courageously reported it later leading to 4 judges coming out of the court calling press conference for the first time in the history calling on press conference warning to the public that the state of judiciary in nation on imminent crisis. All the recent development in the Sohrabudeen fake-encounter is only due to this turning of events. He concluded his words remembering that media should not be “guard dog of the ruling party, but the watchdog of the democracy”. If necessary, it should question establishments and judgements.

Ejaz Aslam (Editor of Radiance weekly)

Alternative media is a promising option that the citizen can ally on. The Muslim society should try to excel in different walks of life, observed the editor of Radiance Weekly.

Ajit Sahi (Former Investigative journalist)

Ajit Sahi, one of the senior most journalist of the nation with unequal experience working across different media house started his words sharing his unexplainable happiness standing on the dais of SIO conference. He requested to the delegates that the conference will send delegates back to their homeland opening a new avenue of thoughts in them. Donald Trump Jr, son of US President has opined that media in the United States should learn from Indian media for its malice. Indian media should not let rulers sleep. The PM who don’t have a degree to his credit is teaching kids how to take their examination. No campaign other than a collective thinking to launch a news media platform can change the course of mainstream media, he opined, underlining the need for an alternative news establishment from the side of oppressed classes.

Abdussalaam Puthige (Varta Bharati)

India is a great nation and civilisation that witnessed all kinds of political experiments such as monarchy, colonial masters, feudalism and finally the democratic practice till the date. Democracy has been now an irony in India. The democracy makes us believe that the common men are the master of its foundation. As long the illusion that citizen should act passively in the democratic involvement remains, corrupt masters are safe while citizen remains virtually slaved. He opined that Dalit India is also existing within India which is out of the immediate attention of social parameters. According to the statistics, every 18 minutes a major crime is reported somewhere in India, while many go unreported. The Dalit community hence suffers from untranslatable living conditions. Moreover, an “officially unofficial apartheid” is in action against Dalits, when we consider apartheid only existed in South Africa. Many of the police stations are untouchable spaces for Dalits, postmen refuse to visit their houses.

A media with true commitments to tenets can help people identify and sustain the debate on the real issues. Mainstream media is already sold out to Corporates, and the hope now lies on social media, he observed.