GUWAHATI, Sep 16: The Opposition INDIA bloc’s move to “boycott” 14 news anchors and its decision to not participate in any talk shows of these anchors has drawn sharp criticism from BJP leaders.
Assam Chief Minister Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma once again chagrined the Opposition saying it’s nothing new for Congress to censor the media as the party had done the same thing in 1975.
“Boycott of media and journalists is not new; it is just a rehearsal, as the Congress party had done the same thing in 1975,” Sarma said on Saturday, addressing a media conference in poll-bound Madhya Pradesh.
The salvo was fired as the Opposition bloc INDIA on Thursday released a “boycott list” of TV anchors and journalists.
“This boycott and media censorship can be traced back to 1975. It is not new. It is a rehearsal for you,” said the Assam CM.
“For any reason, if the Congress government comes to power, the media will get censored, but ISRO has made the Chandrayaan at the right time. I will send the entire Congress party to the moon to form a government there. This is childish,” he quipped.
Launching an attack on former Madhya Pradesh chief minister Kamal Nath, Himanta Sarma said, “Who else in the world has a more tired face than Congress leader Kamal Nath? If Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Kamal Nath ji are made to stand on a stage, Kamal Nath ji looks so tired. There has been massive development in Madhya Pradesh, and I want it to increase after the elections. The INDIA bloc has openly opposed Hindus… I hope people will take cognizance of this and vote accordingly.”
The decision to boycott journalists was taken by the INDIA bloc’s media committee on Thursday. The list shared by leaders of the India bloc contains the names of 14 news anchors. (With inputs from ANI)
