Maintain Dignity of Journalism: DCM to scribes

Bengaluru: Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Sunday called on the media to do journalism of conscience without bowing down to the pressures of businessmen.

Speaking to reporters after receiving ‘Person of the Year’ award, he said, “Maintain the dignity of journalism. Use your pen according to your conscience and don’t bow down the pressures of businessmen.”

“I believe you present the person of the year award to the most influential person of the year. I am glad that you have given me, along with the award, an old and rare photograph of me carrying out a rail roko as a student leader when Jaffer Sharief was the Railway minister,” he said. “I have never received any award in my 43 years of political career but I have accepted this award. In a democracy, we can’t live without the media. Whether you say good things or bad about us, we have to live like a family.”

“You have given me a monicker such as ‘Kanakapurada Bande’. A rock is nature, it becomes a shape when cut and becomes tradition when offered prayers. You have given me the name ‘trouble shooter’ as well. In our world, the media performs the role of Brahma, Vishnu and Maheshwara. Media can praise us and the same media can scold us. Media can make us or the same media can break us,” he said.

“As DVG once said, there is a price for writing and there is a pricing for not writing! Whatever you write, write truth. This award has increased my responsibility,” he said. “Sonia Gandhi ji came to Tihar jail and told me to handle the responsibility she gave. She gave me the responsibility of managing the KPCC. Siddaramaiah and I built the party together,” he said.

“We have one belief and that is the people of the State. A lot of people said that we won’t even win 90-95 seats and that there would be a coalition government. We worked with the confidence that we will form an independent government and we did,” he said.

“When we announced the guarantee scheme, the Opposition tried to create a rift between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law. They floated a narrative that Karnataka will go bankrupt like Sri Lanka and Pakistan, but we have kept our promise and are also managing the State’s finances well.” “Neither Siddaramaiah nor I haven’t come to this position without a lot of work. We have been fighting for our ideology. I have ‘guru’ (teacher) and ‘guri’ (goal). One can achieve anything with self belief.”

“When ED initiated an investigation, many advised me to get an anticipatory bail, but I refused. Where was the need for an anticipatory bail when I haven’t done any mistake. I worked for my party. When I was in the jail, I only thought of what my kids would think but I never lost my self-confidence. I had the belief that I would achieve something in the state. I had that belief then, I have that belief now and I will have that belief in the future too,” he said.

“There is no need to be afraid when one hasn’t done any mistake. Criticise us when we make mistake. I believe who criticise me rather than those who shower praise on you. I have full faith in Justice Shivaraj Patil will provide me justice.”

“Media can correct us politically. But, let us not try to bury the truth by handing over journalism to the clutches of businessmen. It poses a big threat to democracy. Media houses are running media trials in many cases. This should not happen,” he called upon the journalists who attended the award ceremony.