ashok321
ELITE MEMBER
- Joined
- Nov 1, 2010
- Messages
- 17,942
- Reaction score
- 4
- Country
- Location
At least 30 children died in a government run hospital in Gorakhpur, the home town of Uttar Pradesh chief ministter, Yogi Adityanath, on Friday due to stop in supply of liquid oxygen. This took the death toll to 60 as more children had died of same reason in the week.
One would have expected an outrage on the criminal negligence of the administration particularly when, it emerged, Adityanath had visited this hospital only two days ago. But, sadly, the news of 30 children forced to die in one day wasn’t enough to shake the conscience of channels, most of whom were busy carrying out the government propaganda on patriotism.
This could only happen in India, a country, which has now become synonymous to insensitivity to human misery and where we are increasingly getting used to looking at human catastrophe through the prism of political ideologies and its subsequent financial benefits.
Some channels ran shows on Akshay Kumar’s new release Toilet, Ek Prem Katha, while others broadcast special shows on nationalism. One journalist from Times Now told a panellist of her show that deaths of 30 children wasn’t a real issue. Admonishing a panellist on her show, Navika Kumar, who is the managing editor of her channel, said, “The debate is on Vande Matram, you are bringing up this issue because you are running away from ‘real’ issue.”
As expected, she became a subject of ridicule on the microblogging site, Twitter.
Follow
Kapil @kapsology
Navika on @TimesNow We r debating on Vande Mataram & by raking up issue of child deaths in Gorakhpur, u want to divert from real issues.
✔@sardesairajdeep
I believe news channel anchor said today why are you distracting public with Gorakhpur deaths when focus is on Vande Mataram!God help media!
Follow
The-Lying-Lama @KyaUkhaadLega
I fear Navika Kumar of @TimesNow may scold the parents of the #Gorakhpur kids asking them why did their kids choose to die in a BJP state.
Navika wasn’t the only one facing Twitter on the tragic deaths of 30 children in Gorakhpur. Social media users also mocked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his ‘unusual’ silence and perceived reluctance in posting any tweet. Unusual because, Modi would comment or tweet with lightening speed in when even people died in any tragedy on foreign soil or non-BBJP ruled states in India.
Some even pointed out that Modi wasting no time in expressing his ‘pain’ on the collapse of a flyover in Kolkata last year or suicide of Gajendra Singh was because oh incidents had potential to help him politically. While in Bengal, he was keen to extract political mileage ahead of assembly elections, Singh’s suicide enabled him to malign Delhi’s Arvind Kejriwal government.
✔@RifatJawaid
Dear @narendramodi, my team is compiling political reaction on deaths of 30 children in Gorakhpur. They can't find ur tweet. Can u pls help?
✔@ManishTewari
Last Tweet from @narendramodi 17 hrs ago.Not a word condoling death of 30 innocent children/infants DEAD due to lack of oxygen @ Gorakhpur https://twitter.com/narendramodi/status/895914784574459905 …
View image on Twitter
Mr. @narendramodi ,
30 children died in #Gorakhpur
No tweets from you, but you were very quick to tweet of Gajendra Singh's death in Delhi
One would have expected an outrage on the criminal negligence of the administration particularly when, it emerged, Adityanath had visited this hospital only two days ago. But, sadly, the news of 30 children forced to die in one day wasn’t enough to shake the conscience of channels, most of whom were busy carrying out the government propaganda on patriotism.
This could only happen in India, a country, which has now become synonymous to insensitivity to human misery and where we are increasingly getting used to looking at human catastrophe through the prism of political ideologies and its subsequent financial benefits.
Some channels ran shows on Akshay Kumar’s new release Toilet, Ek Prem Katha, while others broadcast special shows on nationalism. One journalist from Times Now told a panellist of her show that deaths of 30 children wasn’t a real issue. Admonishing a panellist on her show, Navika Kumar, who is the managing editor of her channel, said, “The debate is on Vande Matram, you are bringing up this issue because you are running away from ‘real’ issue.”
As expected, she became a subject of ridicule on the microblogging site, Twitter.
Follow
Kapil @kapsology
Navika on @TimesNow We r debating on Vande Mataram & by raking up issue of child deaths in Gorakhpur, u want to divert from real issues.
✔@sardesairajdeep
I believe news channel anchor said today why are you distracting public with Gorakhpur deaths when focus is on Vande Mataram!God help media!
Follow
The-Lying-Lama @KyaUkhaadLega
I fear Navika Kumar of @TimesNow may scold the parents of the #Gorakhpur kids asking them why did their kids choose to die in a BJP state.
Navika wasn’t the only one facing Twitter on the tragic deaths of 30 children in Gorakhpur. Social media users also mocked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his ‘unusual’ silence and perceived reluctance in posting any tweet. Unusual because, Modi would comment or tweet with lightening speed in when even people died in any tragedy on foreign soil or non-BBJP ruled states in India.
Some even pointed out that Modi wasting no time in expressing his ‘pain’ on the collapse of a flyover in Kolkata last year or suicide of Gajendra Singh was because oh incidents had potential to help him politically. While in Bengal, he was keen to extract political mileage ahead of assembly elections, Singh’s suicide enabled him to malign Delhi’s Arvind Kejriwal government.
✔@RifatJawaid
Dear @narendramodi, my team is compiling political reaction on deaths of 30 children in Gorakhpur. They can't find ur tweet. Can u pls help?
✔@ManishTewari
Last Tweet from @narendramodi 17 hrs ago.Not a word condoling death of 30 innocent children/infants DEAD due to lack of oxygen @ Gorakhpur https://twitter.com/narendramodi/status/895914784574459905 …
View image on Twitter
Mr. @narendramodi ,
30 children died in #Gorakhpur
No tweets from you, but you were very quick to tweet of Gajendra Singh's death in Delhi