Chandigarh,
Veteran journalist and former editor of Rajya Sabha TV Urmilesh Singh said today that journalism as a profession has become perilous because those sitting on constitutional posts were destroying the core democratic values. He was speaking at Chhatrapati Smriti Samaroh organised at Sirsa to mark the 15th death anniversary of journalist Ram Chander Chhatrapati.

Urmilesh said, “In the past one year alone, 30 journalists have been killed in the country. India is 136th in world press freedom rankings. News reporting in small cities and towns has become hazardous.”

He said editorial pages were kept blank in protest against emergency. “I heard Chhatrapati on occasions used to keep front page of his newspaper ‘Poora Sach’ blank in protest against autocratic attitude of those in power,” Urmilesh said.

Senior lawyer and former Punjab Advocate General RS Cheema, who has been pleading Chhatrapati’s case in the high court, said that for justice, constitutional spirit and order to prevail, people should be sensitive to issues.Chhatrapati’s son Anshul spoke in detail on how his family had been fighting a lone battle for justice.