TV media’s reporting on #Chembur is proof of its caste blindspot

WrittenBy:NL Team
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It’s a new year but as far as two of India’s top English news channels are concerned, nothing much is going to change in 2018. At least that’s what we gather from their line of reporting on violence in and around Chembur today.

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But, first, a little context. Every year, on January 1, Ambedkarites gather at Bhima Koregaon near Pune to celebrate the Battle of Koregaon – in which Dalit Mahar soldiers of the East India Company defeated the army of upper caste Peshwas. This year marked the 200th year of commemoration.

According to various media reports and accounts on social media, those attending the event were attacked by men wielding saffron flags. Earlier, it was reported that the Akhil Bhartiya Brahman Mahasangh had asked the police to deny permission to the organisers. The Pune Nagar Hindu Sabha had also called the programme anti-national.

The ensuing violence resulted in the death of one person, with several people being injured. This first round of violence did not receive prominent coverage in Delhi-based television news media, even as print and online mediums reported on it.

Dalit groups organised protests against the violence in parts of Maharastra today. According to The Indian Express, “hundreds of people stalled train operations at Mulund, Chembur, Bhandup, Ramabai Ambedkar Nagar in Vikhroli and Nehru Nagar in Kurla”. Sporadic incidences of violence and clashes between the Dalit and Maratha community were also reported. These clashes are now being widely discussed on TV media. Bharipa Bahujan Mahasangh (BBM) leader Prakash Ambedkar has called for a Maharashtra bandh tomorrow and questions are now being raised about the Maharashtra government over its ineptitude in containing violence.

In all of this, Republic TV and Times Now have chosen to focus on the presence of… wait for it… JNU student Umar Khalid and newly-elected MLA Jignesh Mevani at the January 1 event. Note that these two were present among thousands of other supporters.

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Times Now, of course, will focus on Mevani and Khalid instead of questioning the state machinery that failed to protect those gathered at Bhima Koregaon.

Again, CNN News18’s news offering is pegged on whether “Dalit assertion” sparked the violence instead of questioning the state government.

If you needed any proof of Big Media’s caste blind spot, you’re sure to find plenty of it on tonight’s prime-time.

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