Journalist bodies condemn Rahul Gandhi for raising question on impartiality of mediapersons

Two journalist bodies on Thursday condemned Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for raising questions on the impartiality of mediapersons and said political leaders should use ''respectful language'' towards journalists. This came after Gandhi asked mediapersons in the Parliament House complex to remain objective in their work. ''You are not totally employed by the BJP. At least, try a little bit of objective stuff. It gets really shameful. It's too much. Don't you think?'' the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha told reporters when they approached him for his reaction on the treasury bench contemplating bringing a privilege notice against him for his recent speech on the Union Budget in the House. ''You are responsible people. You are media people. You have a responsibility to be objective. You can't just take a word they give you. Right? Everyday. And, run your whole show on that. You are doing a disservice to this country,'' Gandhi said and asked the reporters, ''Are you not able to recognise that?'' Condemning Gandhi's ''behaviour'' with the reporters, the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) and Delhi Journalist Association (DJA), in a joint statement, said political leaders should use ''respectful language towards journalists in public forums and especially in a dignified place like Parliament.'' ''The Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha targeting and insulting media personnel in such a manner in the Parliament House complex is highly condemnable,'' NUJ president Ras Bihari said in the statement. ''Such statements are an attack on press freedom,'' he said, adding, ''The media exists to protect democracy, not to serve any political party's agenda.'' In the joint statement, DJA president Rakesh Thapliyal and general secretary Pramod Kumar Singh said the primary purpose of journalism is to ''question power'' and provide accurate information to the public. ''For any responsible leader to associate the media with a particular party is tantamount to undermining their professional dignity,'' it added.