GOD WITH FEET OF CLAY

                             BIKASH CHOUDHURY

God has also feet of clay? The god of investigative journalism in India, Tarun Tejpal, once a victim of coercive Govt. has now turned a full circle to become an accused in a case of sexual assault and rape allegedly with one of his own female colleague at a Hotel in Panjim, Goa on 7^th of this month; the woman journalist is all of 23 yrs, daughter of an ex-colleague and best friend of his own daughter. All this happened at the venue of an International Literary event “Think 2013” organized by Tehelka; which remain a much admired in literary and Intellectual community for its content and the discourse. Sexual excesses on a colleague by non-other than the founder and the leader of the organization was anti-climax enough ; the subsequent  cover up bid by the violator and his accomplice, Managing Editor of Tehelka, Shoma Choudhury was against the grain of the kind of journalism they have so far so vociferously profess while practice exactly the opposite. Whatever, Tarun Tejpal has done is disgraceful enough and quite unforgivable knowing him as an Author of repute and the toil and tribulation taken to start the kind of Magazine the Tehelka has come  to become from scratch. The role of its Managing Editor in the whole affair has remained much to be desired as she was found to be extremely defensive; though she has all along been looked upon as a staunch and articulate votary of issues pertaining to “Atrocities on Women”. This is just like Elephant having one tooth to show off and another for internal consumption. Tutoring millions of tele-audience about fare and fearless journalism is one thing; but, practicing the same on one’s own self/ organization is quite another. Apparently, she would argue “no surgeon has ever operated on one’s own body. The moral of the story is Mr.Tarun Tejpal, Ms.Shoma Choudhury have disappointed millions people in India who consider them as their role model. The law of the land would take its course with both of them in course of time; but, the verdict of people’s court is all ready out in open. May be, another Tehelka like media would take birth to do justice to the prevalent hypocrisy on ‘atrocities with women’ inside the great and grand portals of Media in India.

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