Published On: 20th July, 2024
Authored By: Sarthak Mishra
Dharmashastra National Law University, Jabalpur
INTRODUCTION
Media is often considered to be the fourth pillar of democracy that acts as a watchdog of the government. Media helps in keeping the executive in check by exposing the irregularities in the functioning of the government. Media helps in formulating certain political opinions in a democracy by controlling the manner in which different political parties are portrayed in the public domain.
In today’s world corruption and political scandals are more common than ever before. Several corruption scandals are exposed every year in the country. These scandals sweep across most of the states in the country and almost all of the major political parties seem to be involved in them either directly or indirectly. While most political scandals receive some form of media attention, it is the manner of their portrayal by mainstream media that these scandals are understood by the people.
It is true that media helps in the formulation of public opinion, at the same time; it is also true that the media helps in the manipulation of public opinion. A different type of portrayal often distorts the real picture leading to information asymmetry. A high form of media attention leads to immediate action by the government, which may sometimes appear to be unwarranted as it leads to media trail and unfair outcomes. On the other hand, lackluster media exposure sometimes leads to genuine scandals being ignored with no actions being taken.
Throughout the project, the author attempted to formulate a report of some recent political scandals that were exposed in the country and the response of various media outlets to these scandals. It seems quite apparent that excessive media exposure leads to quick action in certain cases, on the other hand, weak media exposure leads to certain scandals fading away from the minds of the common masses.
DIFFERENT POLITICAL SCANDALS AND CASE STUDIES
This chapter attempts to study different political scams happened in recent times.
i. WEST BENGAL SSC SCAM- HIGH MEDIA ATTENTION
The West Bengal SSC scam was one of those scams that received widespread media attention in recent times. It involved some of the big names of West Bengal Politics like Partha Chatterjee, a veteran TMC leader.
Recently, Partha Chatterjee, a Trinamool Congress minister leader who was previously in charge of the education ministry, was detained on July 23 by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), who suspected him of being involved in a major cash-for-jobs teacher recruitment corruption scam. It was alleged that the scam mainly involved irregularities and corruption in the recruitment of the Group C and Group D staff assistant teachers of classes IX-XII and also various primary teachers.[1]
The Jobs of the teachers were reportedly available for different prices ranging from 8 lakhs to 15 lakhs depending on the type of candidate and the different standards (class IX, X, XI, XII) for which the post of the teacher is available.[2]
Besides all this, 50 crore bank notes and 6 kg of gold were also recovered from the house of Arpita Mukherjee, (a Close aide of the Partha Chatterjee). As many as 20 mobile phones were also seized from her residence.
It must be noted that CBI and ED are conducting parallel investigations into the matter with both agencies filing their separate chargesheets. The CBI chargesheets include information on the scheme’s modus operandi, and the ED chargesheet provides information on the money trail throughout the entire scam.
The first step in the dispute, according to CBI sources, was to identify those who would be illegally recruited for payment of bribes and also identify those meritorious candidates whose names were removed from the merit list to make room for the non-meritorious ones.
The second step was to understand the ways of how to modify or, more precisely, raise the scores of the ineligible candidates on the commission’s computer in order to include them on the merit list.[3]
The work of collecting the scam’s revenues was delegated to a chain of people, and each person was given responsibility for the collection of money in their own districts.
CBI also stated that Partha Chatterjee was not only aware of the entire scheme but in most cases, the entire process was carried out on his direct orders.
After his arrest in July of this year, the special court in Kolkata extended his period of custody without grant of bail till September The investigation in the case is still ongoing but it seems that with the kind of cash and other evidence that the ED has recovered, the scam was indeed of a significant level.
While it is obvious that the large amount of cash recovered from the house of the minister’s close aide points towards the possibility of a big scam, still the large-scale media attention given to the case led to a media trial of the entire process. Almost all of the media houses gave large-scale attention to this issue leading to the arrest of the minister and also the dismissal of the minister from the party TMC. The minister is being portrayed as a corrupt person in the public domain by the media. It is true that the minister may or may not have done certain acts of corruption, but this must be ascertained only by an extensive trial in court. The widespread media attention led to immediate action being triggered against the concerned persons without a proper court trial. [4]
ii. NARADA SCAM- TARGETED MEDIA EXPOSURE
The Narada Scam was discovered in 2014 when a sting operation was conducted by the CEO of the Narada News Portal Mathew Samuel. This operation showed videos (of around 52 minutes) of prominent leaders of TMC taking bribes in return for certain favors. These leaders included prominent names like Subrata Mukherjee, and Sovan Chatterjee and also leaders like Suvendu Adhikari who later left TMC and joined the BJP. Numerous charges were imposed on the CEO of Narada News including Section 469 (destroying reputation) and 500 (defamation) of the I.P.C. The Calcutta High Court later imposed a stay on such state inquiry on 5th August 2016 in the wake of the parallel court inquiry ordered into the matter. A P.I.L. was filed in the Calcutta High Court that prayed for a fair and impartial investigation into the matter after which the High Court ordered a CBI investigation into the matter in March 2017
The C.B.I. filed an F.I.R. against 12 TMC leaders on 16th April 2017 charging them the Prevention of Corruption Act. In May 2017, the then West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar allowed the prosecution of some of the MLAs alleged to be involved in the scam including Madan Mitra, Subrata Mukherjee, Sovan Chatterjee, and Firhad Hakim.
In 2021, these four leaders were arrested by the CBI who was later provided bail by the Calcutta High Court.11 There was also another petition pending before the High Court filed by the CBI to transfer the case to the High Court currently pending before a special court.
Narada Scam also received widespread media attention in two phases. The first phase was in 2014 when the scam was initially discovered, it came to more limelight during the West Bengal Legislative Assembly elections in 2016. After this, the scam faded from the public memory but again regained media attention after the 2021 legislative assembly election. This shows that the media attention was given to the scam majorly during the election times. Moreover, the media attention is being given only to those leaders arrested by the government agencies, whereas those leaders that shuffled from the TMC to other parties were ignored both by the government and the media.
This scam serves as an example of targeted exposure by the mainstream media wherein a scandal gains significance only during a particular period and that too towards particular persons/leaders. This targeted exposure often leads to negative publicity for select leaders of selected parties. Therefore, it means that the targeted media attention in such cases must be stopped as they lead to undesirable and unwarranted outcomes for those specifically targeted by the media. [5]
iii. KERALA GOLD SMUGGLING SCAM- GRADUAL DECREASE IN MEDIA ATTENTION
This scandal was discovered on 5th July 2020, when the CBIT seized a bag containing 30 kg of Gold which was carried on through a charted flight from the UAE.13It was alleged that this
was actually an instance of gold smuggling from UAE to Thiruvananthapuram involving many high profile names of the ruling LDF party including the Chief Minister. The investigation in the case started with the NIA taking up the case on 11th July 2020, NIA arrested two persons by name Swapna Suresh and Sandeep Nair in the matter. These people had links with the Principal Secretary to the CM i.e. M. Sivasankar, who was later removed from the post and also arrested in the matter. Suresh alleged that the CM of the state was involved in the matter and gold was being transported to him through heavy biryani pots. Allegations were also leveled against the former minister KT Jaleel and former principal secretary to the CM in a confidential statement by Suresh given at a Magistrate court in Kochi under section 164 of Cr.P.C. on June 6th of the last year.[6]
Subsequently, cases under section 120B and section 153 IPC were filed against Suresh by leaders like KT Jaleel. The High Court quashed these F.I.R.s and restrained the state authorities from arresting Suresh as he had already been provided anticipatory bail by the court. Later on in January of 2021, a chargesheet was filed by the NIA wherein it was claimed that the UAE consulate seal was forged by Suresh and his aide to smuggle gold into the country. Other aspects of the allegations were still being investigated by the NIA, ED, and Customs Department.
There were also allegations of foreign currency smuggling happening in the same manner. Suresh has leveled direct allegations against the CM of state stating that the benefits of these illegal transits went to the aides of the Chief Minister and also that the family of the CM is involved in the matter.
The probe into these allegations is still going on by both the Central and the State agencies.
In this case, while there was immediate media attention being given by the media, the media attention gradually diminished. Therefore, the investigation is still continuing however with lesser media attention which inherently shows that even the government investigation might not achieve much owing to the decreased pressure from the media. This case is an ideal example of how even relevant political scandals might not be able to get effective investigation if the media attention gradually fades away from the scandal.
iv. JHARKHAND ILLEGAL MINING SCAM- HIGH MEDIA ATTENTION AND INDIRECT CONSEQUENCES
Recently in July of this year, ED conducted raids in several locations of Jharkhand against the allegations of illegal mining in the state. This included 19 places like Sahibganj, Rajmahal, Barharwa, etc. ED seized accounted cash of around Rs. 5.34 crores from these locations and many other incriminating evidences. The ED also seized 5 stone crushers and 5 illegal firearms from the mining sites that were illegally operated. [7]
In addition to this, ED has also seized Rs. 11.88 crore from 37 bank accounts of several people who were considered to be close aides of the CM of the state Hemant Soren. This also included Pankaj Mishra who is considered to be a MLA representative of the CM. All these proceedings were conducted under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. ED also stated that Pankaj Mishra has illegally held many mining assets in his favor from several places.
The ED also discovered certain other documents and digital evidence concerning illegal mining scams happening in the state. This included a trail of Rs. 100 crore generated from illegal mining that has been discovered by the ED.
Later on, in August 2022, ED conducted raids in 17 locations of Jharkhand, Bihar, and Delhi and seized two AK-series rifles and 60 bullets from one Prem Prakash who was also alleged to be involved in the illegal mining activities in the state. The ED conducted these investigations based on the statement made by Pankaj Mishra (MLA representative of CM) against whom an F.I.R. was filed at the Barharwa Police Station in Jharkhand. In the entire illegal mining scandal, in addition to the 100 crore trail of illegal crime proceeds, ED recovered Rs. 5.34 cash, 13.32 crore lying in Bank Accounts, and an inland vessel of 30 crore rupee.
This scam is again self-evident from the widespread cash and other items being recovered from the houses of different people. This case is also an example of the hype created by the media. Since some of the people involved in the scam were related to the CM of the state. The media attention leads to the formulation of a certain type of public opinion towards the Chief Minister of the state and the ruling party. While the involvement of the CM or the ruling party in the scandal is unclear in the absence of a proper court trial and investigation, the undue media attention leads to the targeting of even those people indirectly involved in the matter. Therefore, this scandal is an example of how media attention can indirectly lead to the vilification of those not directly involved in the matter.
v. M.P. NUTRITIONAL SCHEME SCAM- LOW MEDIA ATTENTION
In September 2022 of this year, the accountant general of the state of M.P. found widespread irregularities in the ration scheme and the nutritional programs for children being organized by the state of M.P. The accountant general submitted a 36-page report that alleged several irregularities in the nutritional scheme of the M.P. Government. It was mentioned in the report that the trucks that were deemed to be used for transporting ration were actually found to be motorcycles, autos, and cars when an inquiry was done with the transport records.
The school education department identified the beneficiaries as 9000 school girls whereas the Women and Child Development ministry without conducting a proper survey estimated the beneficiary girls to be 36.08 lakh which was considered to be a massive exaggeration.
There were also allegations that the six plants in M.P. were deemed to supply 821 metric tons of rations of around Rs. 4.95 crore, whereas these plants did not have the requisite ration available with them. It was also alleged that around 10,000 metric tons of ration costing around Rs. 62.72 crore was completely pilfered. Even in the 8 audited districts, there were absolutely no proper inspections done at the Anganwadi centers which led to further anomalies in the entire distribution scheme.
The M.P. government decided to conduct investigations into the entire manner. However, gradually the scandal was removed from media attention with no major news about the results of the probe coming up in the media.
This case is also an extreme example of how even genuine topics get ignored by the people and government without any major investigation in the absence of proper media attention. There were only a few media houses that reported this scam when it initially appeared in the report of the accountant general. After some time, even these media houses reduced their reporting on this matter. Therefore, while the state government ordered for investigation into the matter, still no significant results were obtained during the investigation owing to the fact that there was no media pressure to declare the results of the investigation. The result was that the scandal completely faded away from public memory without any major consequence for those involved in the scandal.
ROLE OF MEDIA
In certain matters like political crimes and scams, the media remains one of the most important and in some cases the only source of information to the public. Politicians may want to talk directly to voters on certain issues, including popular policy choices, but it is obvious that they have no motive to publicize their transgressions. Because of this, the media have the ability to be critical watchdogs who alert the public to any unlawful behavior by people in positions of authority.
Since a biased media often leads to unfair outcomes in the formulation of public opinion of scandals; the degree to which journalists in the media can aid in uncovering corruption14
depends on how free and impartial the media is. The media must be free and independent in order for their reporting to be effective in identifying corruption.30 Media ownership may be detrimental to anti-corruption initiatives, particularly when corrupt elites, businessmen, or politicians have undue control over the media. In these situations, media coverage might be skewed and exploited to influence people.
CONCLUSION AND FINDINGS
It is indeed a worrying state of affairs that so many political scandals and scams have been exposed in recent times in various states of the country. However, a larger worry among all these scams remains in the fact that the consequences of the scams have been different. In those cases, where the media took a larger interest in the entire affair, there the consequences seem to be more immediate as compared to those cases where the media did not take much interest in the matter. Both of these situations, come up with their own problems, in the first scenario of the media taking a larger interest, the situation becomes that of a media trial wherein the targeted person becomes the victim of such media trial and faces immediate consequences. On the other hand, in those situations where the interest of the media is not up to the desired level, the actions or the probe into the entire matter becomes weak leading to the culprits escaping the inquiry with little to no consequences.
In this manner, it appears that the media must be made more accountable in their manner of portraying the political scandals in the country. It is necessary for the media to give equal importance to all political scandals irrespective of the political party with which they are involved. At the same time, the media must restrain itself from over-exposing these scandals that might lead to a media trial which again is not a healthy practice in a democracy.
One manner in which the media might strike an optimal balance in portraying different scandals is ensuring the basic tenet of impartiality in treating these scandals. The media must be impartial on whether the scam is that of the ruling party or the opposition party. Moreover, the media must not give excessive attention to the scandals of the opposition parties as the opposite parties are anyway the normal victims of the agencies of the ruling party. On the other hand, the media must try to expose those scandals committed by the leaders of the ruling parties as they are not the usual targets of the investigating agencies. Therefore, it becomes the responsibility of the media to expose those scandals rather than ignore them.
Hence, it can be said that media helps in formulating certain political opinions in a democracy by controlling the manner in which different political parties are being portrayed in the public domain.
Reference(s):
[1] Chandan Nandy, ‘Partha Chatterjee, Arpita Mukherjee and West Bengal’s Schools of Scandals’ (The New Indian Express, 24th May 2024) <https://www.newindianexpress.com/magazine/2022/aug/21/partha-chatterjee-arpita-mukherjee-and-west-benga ls-schools-ofscandal-2488928.html> accessed , 24th May 2024.
[2] Ibid
[3] Shiv Sahay Singh, ‘Partha Chatterjee’s custody in the SSchool recruitment scam probe’ (The Hindu, 24th May 2024) 3
Today, 17th March 2024) <https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/narada-sting-operation-calcutta-high-court-cbi-tmc-kolkata-police-96607 2-2017-03-17> accessed, 24th May 2024
[4] Ibid
[5] Anurag Dwary, (NDTV, 4th September 2022) <https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/huge-corruption-in-madhya-pradesh-childrens-scheme-finds-state-auditor-33 14883> accessed , 24th May 2024.
[6] Linda Vuskane, “The Role of Mass Media in Influencing Political Process” (Grin E-book, 2009) < https://www.grin.com/document/159845> accessed 30th June 2024.
[7] Ibid
