Journalist unions in A.P. condemn Jagan’s comments on media

Journalist unions have condemned the remarks made by former Chief Minister and YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) president Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy against media organisations recently.

In a statement released on Saturday, Indian Journalist Union (IJU) general secretary D. Somasundar, A.P. Union of Working Journalists president I.V. Subba Rao, and A.P. Electronic Media Journalists Association president Yechuri Shiva said it is inappropriate for the former Chief Minister to speak about certain national media organisations becoming corrupt.

They said Mr. Jagan’s remarks reflect his long-standing disregard for the media.

The union leaders pointed out that while serving as the Chief Minister and now as the president of a political party, and also being the head of a media organisation himself, it is unbecoming of him to repeatedly make defamatory and disparaging comments about the media.

They criticised the fact that while in the Opposition, Mr. Jagan Mohan Reddy has not changed his tone. They described the comments as unfortunate, recalling that during the YSRCP’s tenure, Mr. Jagan had frequently targeted certain media organisations, with repeated verbal attacks.