Vijayendra writes to Karnataka Chief Minister, seeking withdrawal of restrictions on media at Vidhana Soudha

BJP State president B.Y. Vijayendra has written to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah seeking withdrawal of a circular on restrictions on journalists at the Vidhana Soudha.

In the letter, Mr. Vijayendra objected to the DPAR’s circular which said that electronic media personnel should take bytes of Ministers and legislators only at a certain gate of the Vidhana Soudha and that only those with accreditation cards issued by the Information Department could enter the Vidhana Soudha.

Pointing out that many journalists do not have accreditation cards, Mr. Vijayendra demanded that entry must be provided to even those not having accreditation and also those from electronic media and YouTube channels. YouTube channels have been regarded as media/digital media today, he pointed out.

Stating that the circular had been issued out of security concerns, he maintained that “security can be tightened and made foolproof, but without hindering the media from doing their professional duties.”

“This decision to ban entry of media into the Vidhana Soudha smacks of panic and jitters. It looks like that this decision has been made out of extraneous considerations,” he alleged.

“We are living in a democracy. Transparency and accountability are the hallmark of any government. Let’s be transparent and accountable to the people. Let the media do its job, without any fear or favour. Let there be a healthy relationship between the media and the government on one side and media and legislators on the other side,” he said.