Mamata govt won’t withdraw library circular

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Undeterred by the wide-spread criticism over the circular directing government libraries to offer only a few selected government-friendly newspapers to their readers, the Mamata Banerjee government on Wednesday stuck to its decision.

Ms Banerjee summoned mass education library services minister Abdul Karim Chowdhury for an emergency meeting at the Writers’ Buildings. After the meeting, Mr Chowdhury categorically ruled out the possibility of withdrawal of the controversial circular. “Whatever decision we have taken, had been taken according to government rules,” he added.
Late in the evening, a clarification was issued by the information and culture department that neither the chief minister’s office (CMO) nor the information and cultural affairs department had any hand in the issuance of the government circular.
On March 26, a circular was issued by special secretary, library services and mass education, Rampada Biswas, which said: “No government fund will be spent for purchase of newspapers/dailies published or purported to be published by any political party as a measure to develop free thinking among the masses.” The circular also said that the purchase of newspapers by the public libraries in the state would be “restricted to only the newspapers/dailies shown in the (list).” The state government has prepared a list of eight specific newspapers — five Bengali, two Urdu and one Hindi — which could be kept in these 2,500 odd libraries. Leading Bengali dailies and not a single English daily figured in the government-prepared list for libraries. The Opposition has dubbed the move as covert press censorship.
Interestingly, contrary to the state government’s stated objective, at least three newspapers in the list of eight are owned or edited by persons who have been elected as Rajya Sabha MPs of the Trinamul Congress. The decision has sparked wide-spread protests in the state. Not just Opposition CPI(M) but ally Congress has also slammed the government.
“We are for total freedom to media,” Congress party spokesperson Rashid Alvi told reporters in New Delhi.