How to benefit from a riot; first lesson
A riot
happens in Delhi, the capital of India. It happens on the day of Diwali, the
festival of lights.
Now, riots in India can start due to any reason, a property
dispute, misbehavior with women, a perceived desecration of place of worship or
even a dispute on the volume of loudspeakers.
Nevertheless, as usually happens
in case of riots in India, police takes some time to control it but finally
some people, some of them rowdy and some innocents are put behind bar and riot
is controlled.
So far, so good.
Media does
not cover it. MSM behaves as if the riot never happened. There is no tyranny of
distance or any instructions by administration not to enter the area. Probably,
MSM feels that since the riot happened on Diwali, it is easy to identify ‘the’ community
responsible and that may not be the politically correct thing to do, as usual.
But two
days later, without any declared schedule, Election Commission announces dates
for by-poll in Delhi. One constituency which is around 10 kms away from the
riot spot too is also going for polls.
And the
usual becomes unusual.
Next day
morning, a news trader tweets, “I am told Trilokpuri by-elections due next
month. Are we surprised.” The tweet alludes to the allegations on the right
wing of organizing pre poll riots in UP a few months back. Obvious charge is
that the right wing is indulging in riots because elections have been
announced.
This
exercise, an obvious attempt at defamation gets a leg up as the TV channels now
pick up the scent of prey and start airing the videos of stone littered but
otherwise empty streets & law enforcement officers marching in full gear.
Now, since the responsibility of the riot can be attributed to the right wing without
even a hint of political incorrectness, all breaking news and doomsday
headlines come out in crimson red colors.
Then the
erstwhile honest political party joins the campaign, “Pre-poll communal violence
becoming a pattern. Together we have to frustrate efforts of vested political
interests, who are behind it.” It looks like an ideal statement in the given
situation coming from a responsible political party.
The
orchestrated campaign by a news trader and a politician attempts to portray an
incident of riot as pre poll conspiracy to divide votes, ignoring the fact that a) riot happened
before the polls were announced and b) riot spot is around 10 kms away from the
constituency where bypolls are to happen.
But then
who said the campaign is about truth. It is only about deriving benefit from every
incident, big or small, however violent or horrific.
Eventually,
in politics and in media, electoral & TRP gains are more important even at the
cost of dead bodies.
