Siddu blames BJP for ‘attack on media’

Bengaluru, NT Bureau: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday backed the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) Opposition block's decision not appear on the shows of 14 news anchors, blaming them for setting up a “market of hatred”.

BJP’s national president JP Nadda had termed it a “Nazi style” list, alleging the Opposition parties were hurting press freedom.

Siddaramaiah hit back at the saffron party chief, pointing out the instances of excesses that the BJP committed against journalists.

“We will give you the data on the actual attack on the media. You may have forgotten this, but INDIA still remembers it,” Siddaramaiah told Nadda on the micro-blogging site X (previously Twitter).

The CM pointed out that journalists like Gauri Lankesh, Rakesh Singh, Shubham Mani Tripathi, G Moses and Parag Bhuyan had actually been killed for their work.

He also flagged the names of scribes like Siddique Kappan, Mohammed Zubair, Prashant Kanojia, Ajit Ojha, Jaspal Singh, Sajad Gul and Kishorechandra Wangkhen who were arrested for merely reporting or fact-checking.

Siddaramaiah also cited India’s Press Freedom Index ranking plummeting under BJP rule. The nation had ranked 140 in 2019 and is number 161 in 2023.