Stung by media reports of viral audio recordings of three councillors purportedly seeking monetary favours, the mayor of Chandigarh has chosen to shoot the messenger instead.
As two of the councillors are from her party BJP and one independent, mayor Asha Kumari Jaswal on Wednesday wrote to the senior superintendent of police (SSP), Nilambari Vijay Jagadale, that they had “brought into my knowledge that the recordings are fake”, so the reporters be “associated in inquiry”.
The mayor wants that the source of circulation of the recordings and their authenticity “be brought into public domain”. Her chief concern is that “appropriate action” be taken against “those who lowered the image of the MC” through the recordings.
However, the Congress wondered why she did not send the recordings for forensic tests as “the matter involves a grave issue”, according to councillor Davinder Babla. The mayor had earlier promised that.
{{/usCountry}}However, the Congress wondered why she did not send the recordings for forensic tests as “the matter involves a grave issue”, according to councillor Davinder Babla. The mayor had earlier promised that.
{{/usCountry}}Of the three recordings, the first one that went viral on social media was on November 26, purportedly between BJP councillor Bharat Kumar, who is chairman of the municipal corporation’s sanitation committee, and a representative of Lion Company, which was given contract for mechanised sweeping . In it, the councillor is allegedly asking for monetary favours every month. The mayor had said the audio would be sent to the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL), but nothing has been done. Wednesday’s letter, instead, turns the issue around.
“It is sad that the mayor is trying to put restrains on the media,” said Chandigarh Congress chief and former mayor Pardeep Chhabra, “We will not allow this happen.” Babla said, “She is challenging the media. Instead of writing to the SSP, the mayor should have sent all the audio clips to the CFSL to know the truth.”
Press club condemns
Meanwhile, the Chandigarh Press Club condemned the mayor’s action. In a statement, club secretary general Barinder Singh Rawat said, “We condemn the pressure tactics like summoning to journalists... The journalists are only reporting what is happening in society, therefore they should not be harassed.”
“Revealing the identity of the source is against the ethics of the profession, and the mayor and UT police should know this. If the administration and police continue to put pressure on journalists, then the press club will launch an agitation,” the statement read.