Mamata do the RIGHT thing in a WRONG way
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee feels some newspapers have become too political. So, the state government has banned several newspapers, including Hindustan Times, in the state-owned and state-funded libraries triggering protests from all sections of civil society.
Protests have erupted from different corners, even from those intellectuals who support the Trinamool Congress government. Congress, the main ally of the ruling party, has criticised the decision too.
Following a government order dated March 14, 2012 the state directed that only eight selected
newspapers will be purchased by the state-owned and state-funded libraries in West Bengal. All the eight newspapers featuring in government list are vernacular – five Bengali one Hindi and two Urdu newspapers.
This means, there will be no English newspapers in the 2,060 state-owned and 422 state sponsored public libraries across the state.
The West Bengal library services minister Abdul Karim Chowdhury met chief minister Mamata Banerjee at the secretariat during the day and held a meeting over the waves of protests. Emerging out of the
meeting he clarified that the circualar will not be withdrawn.
"In public interest, government will not buy newspapers published or purported to be published by any political party either national or regional as a measure to develop free thinking among the readers," the
circular stated.
The state government's hypocrisy has been exposed.
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