New Delhi

In battle for freedom of expression

By Our Staff Reporter

NEW DELHI, MAY 27. It was time for the "prisoners of conscience" to exchange notes on freedom of expression in India at a panel discussion here yesterday to mark the release of Amnesty International's annual assessment of human rights worldwide.

Speaking about his experience with censorship, the award-winning documentary film-maker, Anand Patwardhan, said: "The British had used the Censorship Act to stop the freedom struggle. Later, political parties have adopted these laws to enhance their own interests. I think if a sensible person interprets the censorship guidelines, it would not be used in the same way. But every time my freedom of expression has been curbed and I have gone to court, it has upheld this constitutional right.''

Narrating his experience with the controversial play "Ponga Pandit Jamadarin'' which was attacked by Bajrang Dal activists more than once, the renowned theatre personality, Habib Tanvir, said: "The play was not mine. It was a folk play that had been staged since 1935. I think most of my plays have highlighted social issues. Most of all, they are very funny, but I think that the political version of Hindutva has lost its sense of humour.''

While India did not get a clean chit from Amnesty International for letting human rights violations in Gujarat go unpunished and for discriminating against women, religious minorities, dalits and adivasis, but these veterans in this battle for freedom of expression were proof that all was not lost.

"I think it is important to be optimistic. We have people like Habib Tanvir and Anand Patwardhan in the country who are professional dissenters whom we must value greatly. They help us gauge the health of India's democracy. The fact that we can stand here and tell our stories and live is something to be happy about and we need to hold on to our optimism. The biggest monster in the freedom of expression is the State, but there is also commercial greed, which is also a factor and often the gaps in the stories are more telling than the story itself,'' said the Editor-in-Chief of Tehelka, Tarun Tejpal.

Claiming that it was essential to have the stomach to fight, Mr. Tejpal said it was naïve to think that since the "dark forces of fundamentalism" had been defeated and journalists could give up their adversarial roles.

Highlighting the failure of the media to protect the freedom of expression of those who don't have the power of the pen, lawyer Nitya Ramakrishnan, said: "It is also important to remember that we also subscribe to the rhetoric of the State. The media has failed today to clarify any issue for the public, so much so that it believes any person accused of terrorism and brought in front of a court of law is guilty. They miss out the word alleged too. This is something that the State is not doing to us, but we are doing to ourselves.''

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