Newslaundry

Rs 217 crore in just two years. That’s how much the Rajasthan government spent on advertisements – nearly Rs 30 lakh every day. The BJP government spent Rs 137.25 crore on print media and Rs 79.75 crore on electronic media. Big-ticket campaigns included the Rising Rajasthan investor summit, Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma’s swearing-in, government achievements, and advertorials presented as news.

बीते 4 जुलाई को प्रधानमंत्री नरेंद्र मोदी राजस्थान गए थे. वहां उन्होंने कुछ कामों का शिलान्यास और उद्घाटन किया. उस दिन राजस्थान और दिल्ली के सभी अखबारों में भर-भर पेज का विज्ञापन छपा. दो दिन बाद 6 जुलाई को इस उद्घाटन और शिलान्यास की बधाई प्रधानमंत्री को देने के लिए एक बार फिर से भर-भर पेज का विज्ञापन छपा. यह पहली बार नहीं हुआ है. इससे पहले भी राजस्थान सरकार प्रधानमंत्री नरेंद्र मोदी के स्वागत और उनको ‘धन्यवाद’ कहने के लिए करोड़ों रुपये खर्च कर चुकी है.

Punjab 95 – a film based on the life of Jaswant Singh Khalra, the Punjabi human rights activist killed in illegal police custody in 1995 – finally reached audiences on July 3, when it was released on the OTT platform ZEE5 under the title Satluj. It had taken four years to get there. Two days later, it was withdrawn from India “until further orders”, and then internationally. Since then, the debate around the film has only grown louder, in Punjab and beyond.

पुलिस की गैर-कानूनी हिरासत में 1995 में मारे गए पंजाब के मानव अधिकार कार्यकर्ता जसवंत सिंह खालड़ा के जीवन पर बनी फिल्म ‘पंजाब 95’ चार साल की लंबी कशमकश के बाद गत 3 जुलाई को ‘सतलुज’ नाम से ओटीटी प्लेटफार्म ज़ी5 पर रिलीज़ हुई. दो दिन बाद ही ‘अगले हुक्म’ तक इसे भारत में बैन किया गया. बीती शाम इसे दुनियाभर के दर्शकों के लिए प्लेटफॉर्म से हटाने की ख़बर आई. फिल्म की समीक्षा के लिए बनाई गई कमेटी ने इसे देश की ‘संप्रभुता के खिलाफ’ बताया है.

Aadhaar is proof of what? However, with the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls now underway in 19 states and union territories across India, the number of those with voter IDs is likely to come down in the days to come. The SIR in Bengal, which was conducted differently from other states, struck off the names of approximately 91 lakh people. Of these, 34 lakh people appealed against the deletions. On the face of it, the SIR process is simple.

Previously unreported documents reveal that at least one government intervention was prompted by a request that an Isha Foundation representative sent to the union environment ministry. “Listen man…listen to me, every law that is there in the country has been followed. If there is any discrepancy, we fixed it. Long time ago, 20 years ago… some small discrepancy… we have fixed it.

Some people say their cars and bikes have suffered after using ethanol-blended petrol. For months now, falling mileage and concerns about vehicle performance have become a national political flashpoint. But the Union government has repeatedly dismissed these claims. Recently, vehicle owners gathered at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar, holding placards that read, “Humari Gaadi, Humara Adhikaar” - Our vehicle, our right. These, too, have been dismissed as politically motivated.

Buried among hundreds of comments below yet another podcast featuring a recently published author was one line that seemed amusingly true. “One more interview,” someone wrote, “and you’ll have recorded the audiobook.” Amid many potshots and snarky takes that social media throws up, this one stayed with me. It registered pithily as something that has quietly become normal.

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A few months ago, I was walking through a part of Delhi whose two letters, if said without context, still haunt unsuccessful UPSC aspirants. GK. Thankfully not General Knowledge, but Greater Kailash, one of the city's richest addresses. In fact, Delhi has become so rich that after GK 1 and GK 2, it eventually needed a GK 3, perhaps to provide a unique form of EWS (Extremely Wealthy Section) reservation for the expanding rich.