Arundhati Roy slams Indian govt's crackdown on journos as 'more dangerous than emergency'

Author Arundhati Roy expressed her concern in regards to the current situation in the country calling it more perilous than during an emergency.

She told The Wire that an emergency can only be imposed for a limited period of time, but the BJP and Narendra Modi's efforts to change the nature of the republic, and the constitution and suppress the voice of the people can continue unhindered if they are elected to power again. 

"If the BJP wins the election in 2024, India will not remain a democracy," she warned in response to the raids on nearly 50 people associated with NewsClick, during a demo at the Press Club of India in New Delhi on Wednesday (4 October).

Describing the mainstream media as no longer being true media, the author-activist remarked, "The journalists who are in the digital space have started a new genre of journalism that has caused great difficulty to the government."

She at the time questioned the blurred line between journalism and terrorism, particularly in the arrest of NewsClick founder Prabir Purkayastha and the web portal's HR head Amit Chakravarty.

"How can there be no boundary between journalism and terrorism? How can they seize the devices of journalists without explanation? No FIR was given and charges were not mentioned because the draconian UAPA was invoked," she said.

Arundhati Roy expressed her concerns about the Modi government's regressive rules dictating what qualifies as fake news, suggesting that such attacks on the press would mean that only news that is in favour of the government will reach the public.

She noted that the raids on individuals associated with NewsClick indicate the government's fear, expressing worry about potential arrests leading up to the upcoming elections.

"I worry that from now until December (when five states will have elections) and May next year (when general elections will be held), there may be more arrests," the author said.

She emphasised that the raids on journalists should not be viewed as a distraction from the Bihar caste census, urging serious consideration of the fact that journalists are being treated like terrorists.

On the Bihar caste census, she believes even if people try to knock the issue out of the headlines, it has revealed the true composition of the country and will spark a revolution. "The upper castes, who constitute only 15% of the population, are dominating in all fields," she said.

RJD's Rajya Sabha MP Manoj Jha concurred with Arundhati Roy, predicting that the caste census in Bihar would empower marginalised groups.

Meanwhile, Historian Ram Guha compared Modi to Indira Gandhi, noting authoritarian traits but emphasising that Gandhi was not majoritarian and did not discriminate based on religion.

"But unlike Modi, she was not majoritarian. She did not discriminate on the basis of religion. We saw these kinds of regimes earlier, and they have passed. This one will pass too," he told The Wire.

Lawyer Prashant Bhushan criticised the raids on NewsClick, deeming them illegal, especially the seizure of laptops from journalists remotely connected to the news portal.

He said, "If the allegation is that NewsClick has received money from some Chinese nationals, there is no offence under UAPA. PM CARES received money from Chinese companies. There are allegations against Adani too [that it received money from China]." 

He said that it is also illegal to seize the laptops of journalists who are even remotely connected to NewsClick and called it a blatant attempt to intimidate independent media, asserting that it would not succeed.