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Panji, “If media feels that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar are distancing themselves or keeping away from media and journalists, the latter should introspect on the reasons for this”, said Speaker of Goa Legislative Assembly Rajendra Arlekar here on Thursday.
Mr. Arlekar was speaking at a function organised by State-owned Institute Menezes Bracanca in association with local Editors of Marathi dailies, in memory of Marathi journalist late Madhav Gadkari.
Mr. Arlekar was responding to introductory remarks by Raju Nayak, Editor, Lokmat, Goa who, inter alia, said, “It is time journalists take stock of emerging situation and analyse the souring relationship between politicians and journalists and media. Media is presently restless over the language of Prime Minister Narendra Modi or Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar, who have been talking of keeping away from media.”
He went on to reiterate that media must introspect as to why persons who are in complete limelight feel like keeping media at arm’s length.
The comments assume significance as Mr. Parrikar has been using public platforms like business and trade bodies like Confederation of Indian Industries to propagate his views that media be kept away from deliberations where policy-decisions are taken. He has publicly favoured a policy of sharing decisions with media for dissemination to people and not the decision-making processes, lest media create confusion and misunderstanding among people.
Mr. Nayak also referred to latest development where in the Editors Guild of india on Wednesday urged the Union Ministers to step up interface with media as part of much needed transparency in governance.
