Patna,(BiharTimes): Till a year back Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar was the darling of the media. But the Fourth Estate started changing its gear after June 16, 2013 split in the National Democratic Alliance.
Independent political observers are, however, of the view that Nitish might have taken a different road, and thus might have committed a political blunder; but does this mean that the media should suddenly become so partisan and hostile?
Many journalists are of the view that the Press has gone against his government because when he was all powerful and the government was not in the minority the state government used to arm-twist the newapersons. Several of them became its victims.
No doubt, this is true. But the big question is what was the role of the BJP ministers then? Their ministers too were party to this act of muzzling the Press. What happened in Purnea after the killing of a BJP MLA, Raj Kishore Kesari, by Rupam Pathak, who alleged that she was sexually harassed by the legislator and his aide, is known to all.
Some media-pundits, like Engineer Aftab Ahmad, veteran Urdu columnist, are of the view that the Press must not lose objectivity under any circumstances.
“How can one say that he had done nothing for Bihar and only the BJP ministers were responsible for the development of the state in the seven and a half years? Can one believe that the growth rate has fallen just a month after the BJP ministers quit. It the figures were inflated earlier then the media should have highlighted that fact then too, and not now,” commented one of them without wishing to be quoted. As the captain of the team the credit goes to Nitish for some of the good works done by the state government, he added.
Many intellectuals are of the view that the media has definitely lost its balance like it did with the previous government. “The media is writing off all the achievements of the UPA government too as if it has done nothing in the last one decade. This is poor journalism,” a senior journalist added.
A journalist associated with an English daily called it “the media over-bashing” of Nitish and other parties as well. If this is being done at the instance of any particular political party than it is more unfortunate, he told the BiharTimes obviously on condition of anonymity.
Analysts are of the view that Janata Dal (United) might not do better in this election, but still enjoys support of a large section of Extreme Backward Castes and Maha-dalits and if the party remains in tact, it can bounce back in the Assembly election due next year. In politics such things do happen, and one can not totally write off anyone. After all the RJD, which was down in the dump till the first week of March––when 13 of its MLAs quit (nine later returned) and Ram Kripal Yadav and Ghulam Ghouse chose to walk out and fight as JD(U) candidates––is now likely to make a comeback.
These days Nitish Kumar is making emotional speeches stating that if “you donot give vote to me, than everyone would say that people in Bihar vote in the name of community and caste and not development.”