Rahul Gandhi today re-launched the Congress-run National Herald newspaper to target the BJP-led government and criticise what he called the silencing of voices in the country.
The newspaper which was founded by former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru is relaunched by Vice President Hamid Ansari to mark the 70th year of Independence, in the presence of Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi at Ambedkar Bhavan on Millers Road in Bengaluru.
Nearly eight decades after its launch it has come to signify a legal tangle for Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, where they were accused in a petition of setting up a company, Young Indian, to buy the newspaper’s debts using Congress party funds, and illegally acquiring property worth 5,000 crores belonging to the newspaper.
Last month, the Delhi High Court refused to stop a tax investigation into Young Indian but asked the Congress to approach the Income Tax assessing officer. The BJP called it a major setback for the Congress, which, however, said it is free to raise objections with the Income Tax department.
“The power of truth is being displaced by the truth of power. Anybody who attempts to stand by the truth is pushed aside. Dalits are beaten, minorities threatened,” Rahul Gandhi said in Bengaluru.
“A Soviet poet once said, when truth is replaced by silence, the silence is a lie. That is what the government is trying to do. The National Herald has a strong spirit and will not be silenced. Speak the truth, do not be silenced, do not be scared. Thousands of journalists are not being allowed to write what we want,” he alleged.
The chief guest, Vice President Hamid Ansari, said, “The duty of the state is clear – free media is necessary for free society. When faced with unjust restrictions, censorship in the media can aid covering of abuses. “
After the mega start in Congress-ruled Karnataka, where elections will be held next year, the newspaper’s weekly print edition will be launched by President Pranab Mukherjee in Delhi.
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