On 15 June 2009, the Bombay High Court directed Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) to honour an agreement signed with Anil Ambani’s Reliance Natural Resources Ltd (RNRL) as part of a family asset division that assured the latter supply of gas from the KG basin at a discount price of $2.34 per unit, a private deal that the Supreme Court later ruled was invalid since the gas was State-owned even though RIL was the gas field’s operator. Here, Niira Radia discusses the implications of the High Court judgment with prominent journalist Vir Sanghvi
“What kind of story do you want? Because this will go as Counterpoint, so it will be like most-most read...” —VIR SANGHVI
DATE 20 June 2009 TIME 12:09:59
RADIA: Hi
VIR: Okay, now I can talk.
RADIA: I just got out of this treadmill. On this battle. I need to, I’m trying to get Mukesh to come out and talk.
VIR: Yeah.
RADIA: But the thing is this, we have to, if he talks, we have to carry it as is, in the sense that you know he, I think, they’re very conscious of every line and everything that goes out.
VIR: Yeah.
RADIA: Because it’s a battle. It’s a battle at the end of the day for him, you know. And also, whether we bring it into print.
VIR: Right.
RADIA: That’s the other issue. I think the…
VIR: But see Anil can’t afford to give interviews because he will be asked about Amar Singh, so many things, so that the advantage Mukesh has is that he can talk and there is nothing for him to be embarrassed about. So many skeletons in Anil’s closet that he doesn’t want to clarify. If he comes on, he says, ‘Amar Singh is my close friend,’ he is fucked. If he comes on, he says, ‘I have no relations with Amar Singh,’ Amar Singh will kill him. I mean there are so many awkward things, so Anil has decided to avoid the media. Mukesh doesn’t have that problem. Mukesh can talk straight, can say things. You can rehearse. You can work out a script in advance. You can go exactly according to the script. Anil can’t do any of those things, no?
RADIA: Right. But we can do that, no?
VIR: Yeah.
RADIA:Yeah?
VIR: But Mukesh has to be on board. He has to sort of realise. It has to be fully scripted.
RADIA: No, that’s what I mean. I think that’s what he’s asking me.
VIR: Yes, it has to be fully scripted.
RADIA: He is saying is that, ‘Look Niira’, that ‘I don’t want anything extempore.’
VIR: No, it has to be fully scripted. I have to come in and do a run through with him before.
RADIA: Yeah, yeah.
VIR: We have to rehearse it before the cameras come in.
RADIA: Yeah, yeah.
VIR: Then it is worth doing.
RADIA: Correct, correct.
VIR: Otherwise, there is a lot at stake.
RADIA: Yeah. That’s right, that’s the one point. The other thing was that when Rohit on this particular article of [inaudible] because Anil is going all out and we are going to start talking. It is not as if we are not going to start talking. But I think the challenge that I’m facing is that I think we need to set the tone.
VIR: Okay.
RADIA: How what has happened as far as the order is concerned is completely against national interest.
VIR: Okay.
RADIA: You know and even if we were to assume that they get gas or they get coal, or they get iron ore or whatever one gets. If you look at how Tatas has always gone into those areas and done something for the people even before they have been able to extract anything out of it.
VIR: Right.
RADIA: Here, the culture of, you know, if it’s set at a power plant in Shahpur, which Rohit will brief you, or is setting up a power plant in Dadri… One would ask a question, have you actually done anything for those people even though you are taking their land from them? I can say today you know with my hand on my heart whether it is Kalinga Nagar that we are fighting the Maoists or Singur where we fought Mamta, we continue doing work whether our plant came up or not. You know sometimes…
VIR: What kind of story do you want? Because this will go as Counterpoint, so it will be like most-most read, but it can’t seem too slanted, yet it is an ideal opportunity to get all the points across.
RADIA: But basically, the point is what has happened as far as the High Court is concerned is a very painful thing for the country because what is done is against national interest.
VIR: Okay.
RADIA: I think that’s the underlying message.
VIR: Okay. That message we will do. That allocation of resources which are scarce national resources of a poor country cannot be done in this arbitrary fashion to benefit a few rich people.
RADIA: That’s right.
VIR: Yeah. That message we will get across, but what other points do we need to make?
RADIA: I think we need to say that you know it’s a lesson for the corporate world that, you know, they need to think through whenever they want to look at this, whether they really seriously do give back to society.
VIR: So I will link it to the election verdict. The fact that there has been so much Narega, that Sonia has commit•ted to including everybody, that it should be inclusive growth. It shouldn’t just benefit the few fat cats. It shouldn’t be cronyism. It shouldn’t be arbitrary. That’s how the message for this five years of Manmohan Singh should be—that you have to put an end to this kind of allocations of scarce resources on the basis of corruption and arbitrariness at the cost of the country, otherwise the country will not forgive you.
RADIA: Yeah, but Vir, you have to keep in mind that he has been given the gas field by the Government to operate. He spent ten billion dollars on it.
VIR: Okay.
RADIA: Anil Ambani is getting the benefit without spending a cent on it…
VIR: I’ll make those points, no?
RADIA: Yeah.
VIR: So I’ll make those points. The people, because the system is so corrupt and open to manipulation, by manipulating the system, by not paying anybody you can get hands on resources. Therefore the only way Manmohan Singh hopes to survive is to get a handle on the resources and have some kind of way of allocating them that is transparent, fair and perhaps done by him.
RADIA: But there you will be attacking Mukesh only, no.
VIR: Why, why, why, explain that.
RADIA: You see, because a resource has been allocated to Mukesh in this case.
VIR: So, what point do you want me to make?
RADIA: The point I’m making is that here, the point is limited to the fact that you cannot have a High Court deciding on this. You cannot have a tribunal deciding on this.
VIR: What about ministers?
RADIA: Even ministers.
VIR: Spectrum and co is ministers, no?
RADIA: Yeah, even ministers. You want to really look at, maybe there’s an EGoM [Empowered Group of Ministers] that got set and is looking at the pricing issue, and natural resources should be decided not by any of this arbitrary mechanism. It has to be one for the country. And there should be some sort of a formula that Manmohan Singh has to...
VIR: Yeah, that is the message, you know. There should be a formula by which resources will be allocated in a transparent, non-arbitrary sort of way. That has to be a message, no?
RADIA: Yeah. And also, you know, going to court.
VIR: That the people want resources, they have to be back to society. They have to pay the Government. They have corporate social responsibility. They have to care about the people who are going to be displaced, the people who are going to lose things. You can’t just go ahead and rape the system.
RADIA: Yeah. But you want to say that you know, more importantly that here a family MoU has taken precedence over national interest, and what the judge has done… I mean you’ll have to attack the judge here because the judge has, what he’s done, he’s given preference to an MoU. He has held on to the MoU and said, ‘Okay, this had to be implemented.’ But he has forgotten what’s good, that’s why it raises a bigger constitutional issue.
VIR: Which is?
RADIA: Which is natural resources is really a constitutional issue. It has to do with the country and the nation.
VIR: It’s not between two brothers and their fight.
RADIA: It’s not and therefore the judge’s interpretation of an MoU…
VIR: Yeah.
RADIA: It cannot be the basis of the way how we can proceed on these sorts of issues. I mean, you have to attack the fact that the judge has only gone into the MoU. His entire judgment is on the basis of the MoU.
VIR: Yeah.
RADIA: And therefore a judgment between two family members cannot be how you decide the future.
VIR: Okay. Let this Rohit come, let me explain to him, and I’ll talk to you and tell you what line I’m taking.
RADIA: Okay. And you’ll do it for next Sunday, is it?
VIR: No, no tomorrow
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And now, a conversation on an entirely different issue. In May 2009, as coalition talks between the DMK and Congress broke down, Niira Radia was apparently involved quite actively in opening channels between the two parties through, among others, Vir Sanghvi
VIR SANGHVI “I won’t get into Sonia in the short term, let me try and get through to Ahmed”
DATE 22 May 2009 TIME 13:03:19
VIR: Hi Niira.
RADIA: Hi Vir. Where are you, Delhi or…
VIR: I’m in Jaipur. Coming back this evening.
RADIA: Okay. I just wanted to… I’ve been talking to my Tamil Nadu friends.
VIR: Okay.
RADIA: I just need to… I don’t know whether you are in the position to get through to anyone at Congress. I just met Kani just now.
VIR: Okay.
RADIA: And I’ve been, you know, we re-united since yesterday. The problem is…
VIR: I was supposed to meet Sonia today, but I’ve been stuck here. So, now it’s becoming tomorrow. I’ve been dealing with Rahul, but tell me?
RADIA: No, I’ll tell you what---they are not understanding that they are actually communicating with the wrong guy. Not because I detest Maran, but actually the father has not nominated Maran to negotiate. Now, you know, it’s like a banana republic where the Cabinet…
VIR: Then why Maran became the face? They all hate Maran.
RADIA: No. He is not, he is not. I know, no. But the Congress is under the impression. They have already apparently indicated to Maran that the Prime Minister will not give infrastructure berth to DMK, which… but he himself is desperately pushing for an infrastructure berth for himself.
VIR: Right.
RADIA: But the problem is that there is a leader which is Kani’s brother, which is Alagiri, who’s won that election and he is a mass leader.
VIR: Okay.
RADIA: Now what has apparently… Maran has gone and indicated to Congress that he will accept a MOS independent, and you leave it with me, everything will be okay.
VIR: Okay.
RADIA: Which blames Baalu, Raja and Maran Cabinet posts independent to Alagiri and MOS to Kani.
VIR: Okay.
RADIA: Now, Alagiri is a very, you know, he is, he is a mass leader. He controls half of Tamil Nadu for Karunanidhi’s point of view.
VIR: Okay.
RADIA: He is far too, too senior for Maran. So, what he has told his father that if you make Maran a Cabinet minister…
VIR: Yeah.
RADIA: …I’ll not come into the Cabinet. And the father cannot afford to upset him because…
VIR: Obviously.
RADIA: …simply because of his position.
VIR: Yeah.
RADIA: Right now, the Congress doesn’t seem to be understanding this.
VIR: So, who should they talk to?
RADIA: They need to, look, they need to talk directly to Karunanidhi, they need to talk to Kani.
VIR: Sonia spoke to him yesterday, you know.
RADIA: No, she didn’t speak to him. Only Prime Minister spoke, even that was Kani was translating for him. It was very brief that, you know, let’s try and resolve this issue. There is nothing at all and whatever. They need to get Ghulam Nabi Azad to speak to Kanimozhi.
VIR: Okay.
RADIA: Seriously, that’s the only thing that will work and Kani will take them to her father.
VIR: I won’t get into Sonia in the short term, let me try and get through to Ahmed.
RADIA: No. But they need to speak to Kani [Kanimozhi, DMK Chief M Karunanidhi’s daughter], and Kani will take him to their, her father directly.
VIR: Okay.
RADIA: He has no problem with three Cabinet berths at all. In fact, it is the Congress that messed it up.
VIR: Mm...hmm.
RADIA: Had they, had they not kept on insisting and kept on pushing Maran forward… themselves have been pushing Maran forward. They would have left it to Raja and, and Baalu even if they wanted, or Raja and Alagiri and Kani would taken independent, nobody will, it is Congress they started this whole Maran dialogue.
VIR: Oh, I have been thinking that DMK nominated Maran.
RADIA: No. No. No. No, they did, they’ve sent a list earlier with five portfolios and Maran’s name because father was pushed … so he had to send a list with everybody’s name on it. But he was hoping that Congress would come back and say, ‘Okay, we will accept Raja,’ or ‘We will not,’ or ‘Not Raja, we will give you only three portfolios,’ right? But they have not able to, the communication that’s been happening in Congress with DMK has been completely warped. They are talking to the wrong guys.
VIR: Okay. Let me try and get through to Ahmed.
RADIA: The, the simplest way is Kani [inaudible; 0:03:24].
VIR: Yeah.
RADIA: And Kani [inaudible; 0:03:27] will take them to her father directly.
VIR: Okay.
RADIA: And they can have this, you know, whatever are the, the concerns, whatever they want to say, let them say in front of Kani.
VIR: And he’ll never mind. He will not mind.
RADIA: Yeah, they should say, they should say, ‘We don’t want Maran.’
VIR: Okay, done. Let me just try and get through and I’ll let you know soon.
RADIA: But the moment you drop Maran, your problem gets resolved because Alagiri has done okay.
VIR: Okay.
RADIA: Okay. Give him this message. She is right now…
VIR: I just…
RADIA: [Inaudible; 0:03:51] She is in her South Avenue residence.
VIR: They have a mobile , you know?
RADIA: I just met her.
VIR: Okay.
RADIA: And some Tamil Nadu Congress guys also want just now to meet her.
VIR: Okay.
RADIA: I don’t think it needs to be done at that level. It needs to be done at, at Ghulam Nabi Azad level or…
VIR: Well, I’ll talk with Ahmed. I’m going to talk to him.
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A follow-up discussion on cabinet berths for the DMK’s leading lights, including of course the Telecom Ministry for A Raja
NIIRA RADIA “Thanks…That was really great, you know, you all, I mean it was exactly as you had said”
DATE 23 May 2009 TIME 22:26:42
VIR: Hello.
RADIA: Sorry to disturb you.
VIR: Hi, no problem.
RADIA: They had a meeting.
VIR: Okay.
RADIA: MK Narayanan [National Security Advisor at the time] had come.
VIR: Okay.
RADIA: And as suggested it was Kani only.
VIR: Okay.
RADIA: And they had a… they are still stuck to their four formula and one independent.
VIR: Okay.
RADIA: But these people will also think about it and let him know tomorrow morning. He is…
VIR: But they will not send him about the family or whatever, right?
RADIA: No. He clarified everything that you had told him.
VIR: Okay, very good.
RADIA: I think that there was no issue, and there was, and there was lot of relief from this Chief Minister’s side.
VIR: Okay.
RADIA: And he realised that, you know, this is all being done by…
VIR: By Maran.
RADIA: …yeah. [inaudible; 0:00:42] But the thing is that it appears that he is still under a lot of pressure to take Maran, you know, so…
VIR: Where is this coming from, this pressure?
RADIA: It’s coming from Stalin and his sister Sylvie.
VIR: Okay.
Radia: So, I believe Maran has given about 600 crores to Dayalu, Stalin’s mother.
VIR: 600 Crores, okay?
RADIA: 600 Crores, is what I’m told.
VIR It’s hard to argue with that kind of pressure?
RADIA: Isn’t it. So, he is…
VIR: Yeah.
RADIA: …but no, but he doesn’t know, the father doesn’t, I mean...
VIR: Doesn’t realise what?
RADIA: Doesn’t realise that. But this is the feedback that Alagiri has got.
VIR: Okay.
RADIA: And…
VIR: So, basically what they want is a little more flexibility and posts right? They want probably more cabinets or something?
RADIA: They are saying one more cabinet and Kani was independent charge.
VIR: Yeah.
RADIA: But if they stick to three and give independent charge, then Kani gets her independent and then Alagiri, Baalu and Raja come in?
VIR: That is not so bad, you know.
RADIA: Yeah, so I think…
VIR: …unless Maran is one of the cabinet.
RADIA: Yeah. But yeah, unless Maran is one of the cabinet. But I don’t think he can give it to three family members.
VIR: Yeah.
RADIA: That will send a very wrong signal.
VIR: That’s right.
RADIA: So, the best thing is, you know, if I don’t know whether Narayanan can say that, I mean he can’t say who should be the people. But he could probably go back and say that, you know, Baalu and Raja and Alagiri is the best option and Kani, you know.
VIR: And it’s good for the Government also. That doesn’t seem to be giving it to the family.
RADIA: Yeah. Yeah but then I don’t know whether he is in the position to take names, you know.
VIR: Because Baalu and Raja are saying it is being spread by Maran saying that we don’t, nobody wants them because they are crooks to advance his own career, you know.
RADIA: Yeah. Yeah. So, if there was anything that could be said which is, that, that you know, you know, if, if Narayanan was to come back tomorrow and say by looking, I think, we think that may be the three, and we’ll see a little later for the fourth one. But for now let’s just look at Alagiri, Baalu and Raja…
VIR: And, and, and see Maran…
RADIA: …and we can give independent to Kani.
VIR : Yeah. Makes sense.
RADIA: And, and that would be a, a good thing for him to say. And they are asking for environment and forest.
VIR: See, Narayanan will talk to PM. Then they have to communicate, he won’t talk to the Congress President.
Radia: Hmm?
VIR: He won’t talk to Congress president. So, somebody … he’s PM’s man, he has gone on behalf of PM. So, they will, PMO will send its feedback to Congress party. So, that stage my friends will get a….
RADIA: So they will in any case speak to Ahmed, you know.
VIR: Yeah. Yeah, they will. And nothing will happen without his getting involved.
RADIA: Yeah.
VIR: So, I’ll speak to him right away and convey this?
RADIA: Yeah. But maybe that, you know, he would have to specify then that we are not too comfortable with Maran…
VIR: Yeah.
RADIA: …and let it be Baalu and Raja because so much has been said and then it would also, also send a wrong message that if you don’t take Baalu and Raja now. But I don’t know whether they will say that?
VIR: I don’t know. Well let’s, let’s. No, harm trying.
RADIA: But therefore Kani, is asking for, he is not told Narayanan this, but they’ve suggested a couple of ministries.
VIR: Which one?
RADIA: But they are saying okay, telecom is going to Raja in any case.
VIR: Okay.
RADIA: That, the old man is very clear about.
VIR: Okay.
RADIA: But as far as the other two are concerned, he doesn’t mind. He is not very fussed about chemical, fertilisers and labour.
VIR: Okay.
RADIA: How funny, he would prefer that she gets independent charge Environment and Forest or something like that. You know, where she can get her teeth in and she is I think, she is very upright with it. So, they shouldn’t have any problem with that, or by the way aviation also.
VIR: What about Civil Aviation?
RADIA: And Civil Aviation.
VIR: It gives her the, it gives her the profile she would need, you know.
RADIA: She wants the aviation because, why she says aviation because she can do Chennai airport, Salem and Madurai and all that, you know…
VIR: Yeah.
RADIA: …it gives her the, the foothold for the political side.
VIR: We don’t have anyone there. Let me talk.
RADIA: Yeah. And she is intelligent and she will do just, because they are saying Environment and Forest and Aviation for Kani in independent charge.
VIR: I’ll pass this on?
RADIA: Yeah. Thanks. Thanks to you.
VIR: Yeah.
RADIA: That was really great, you know, you all, I mean it was exactly as you had said and…
VIR : Okay.
RADIA: They were very relieved and she was so relieved. So, wants to say thank you to you personally.
VIR: I’ll pass it…
RADIA: Let’s hope tomorrow it will---and Alagiri has got all those messages. My person came back and confirmed.
VIR: Oh, very good.
OLDER COMMENTS FIRST
31 COMMENTS
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brilliant stuff. you found a subscriber in me.
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Now what? Barkha Dutt and Vir Sanghvi will use Morse code and Braille to talk to sources?"
Manu Joseph, this edition was as good as Serious Men. It's nice that you placed the facts up front and let readers see for themselves. These two faces -- BD and VS -- need to be shown their place because they have been doing a lot of 'talking down' upon readers and viewers, especially VS. It's true, nobody can fool everybody all the time. This story will be in our memory for a long, long time. And I suppose, the V will write a strange, cryptic Counterpoint in HT this Sunday, and generalize everything to a point that he would escape like a saint and write about good wine -- as always.
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It's a great revelation. How can Vir Sanghvi call himself an independent reporter when he is so close to congress that he is acting as an interlocutor between Congress and DMk. It's time that journalists should come clean and abide by the same standards which they expect from politicians and bureaucrats.
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How long and boring. But what is this transcript proving? I wish this controversy had some real meat. Instead it is this stupid long chatter from Nira Radia. Why is Open magazine trying to create a sensation I am wondering? Who is paying Open magazine to do this? I think Open should be sued for defamation at the very least.
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Chk out the Indian celebrities on twitter at http://celebtweets.in
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guys put it up on wikileaks so as to get a global audience for this story. great story.
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Vir - such a shame! Read it and go die in a "chillu bhar pani". No, seriously!
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Courageous story guys! keep it up. dont end the campaign here itself. You can see how mainstream electronic media has kept mum on this and Barkha Gate. So your further commitment and coverage is needed.
Thanks.
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Mr. Manu Joseph, This is one great expose of the corruption in top media center, which always takes side of the ruling party no matter how criminal their actions are. I was really sick and tired of the ndtv and other top medias reporting, it is getting so malicious that it will completely destroy the country. I am a big fan of open magazine now for this daring expose. I appreciate if you can highlight as much as possible about this incident, people should know the big game going on to loot the country by the government and highly recognized media centers.
Good luck and god bless you with lots of courage to keep the government on right track. I believe media can greatly help or harm the country in these days.
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Congrats for bringing up a story entirely buried by our greedy corporate media!This is very interesting.It really looks like Vir Sanghvi wrote his column on the basis of his talks with Niira Radia.And though all this might not implicate anything, there is the key issues of integrity and media responsibility.You can handle your sources, as a member of the media, but why would a member of media decide which ministry should be allocated to whom and why would a member of media act as a conduit between two coalition parties?And now Vir Sanghvi has posted a response stating that "these transcripts do not appear to be entirely accurate", which we all know is a classic political response.As a country, may be its time for all of us to realize that integrity doesn't have shades!You either have it or you dont.
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I think under IT Act 2008 amendment sections 66 & 69 disclosures that are "annoying words" can attract criminal punishment. Suggest Open Mag and its staff to get legal advise in parallel because you never know how you may be attacked. Good luck!
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Want to throw up. These are the people who run our country.This is how governments are formed in our country. And we work hard and pay taxes for these people to barter and loot.
We are heading to be a Banana republic not a Global superpower
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It is shameful and even now our honourable puppet PM has not opened his mouth. I used to always feel that the media was biased but credible journalists like Vir sanghvi and Barkha dutt being involved in such a racket is sad and shameful for a country like ours. Pranab Roy should put Barkha dutt on we the people discussing her power broking and 100 crores of kickbacks that she has made for NDTV. I hope Barkha and Vir Sanghvi are thrown out of their jobs and taken to court for their antinational activites.
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What does Vir think he is. For a lot of us he is a man with low libido looking for a self styled signature this signature that - a fat old guy just collecting stuff. And let me tell you Sonia and Rahul will never meet him. Just a buzzo - a pimp.
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Vir is a liar....cheater....
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Wasn't my comment moderate enough? Could you mail me why my comment was not published.
All the same, thanks to you guys, VirBarkhaNdtv stand exposed and my belief in the system and Journalism is restored.
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This is a grand expose. Keep it up. Satyameva Jayate. Down with cronies like Vir and BarkhaNdtv
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Amazing job guys in exposing this - great work !!!
Vir and Burkha - SHAME on YOU. SHAME on you NDTV and all the supporters of Burkha like Rajdeep Sardesai.
This is a SHAMEFUL situation where the leading news media of the country like NDTV and CNN IBN are just pawns and working on behalf of the ruling party and government.. CHEATERS.
India's future looks BLEAK with this kind of politicians and mediators and Media. God save India. Satmamave Jayate.
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All the big media guys, like Sagarika, Rajdeep, Pronnoy Roy, you name, across the channels and publications, try to negate the story from the point of view of privacy. They from their heart, dont want story like this as most of them are very likely to have engaged similarly with some one if not with Niira Radia. They are scared of those tapes if they also exist and are in queue to be in public.
So whenever there is any discussion, just see the body language of the big shot journalists and their point of view. Interesting point to see the lobby here also to stop people who helped public to know our media, politician and corporates. Govt at the behest of the lobby therefore have started probe to stop such further revelations.
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All the big media guys, like Sagarika, Rajdeep, Pronnoy Roy, you name, across the channels and publications, try to negate the story from the point of view of privacy. They from their heart, dont want story like this as most of them are very likely to have engaged similarly with some one if not with Niira Radia. They are scared of those tapes if they also exist and are in queue to be in public.
So whenever there is any discussion, just see the body language of the big shot journalists and their point of view. Interesting point to see the lobby here also to stop people who helped public to know our media, politician and corporates. Govt at the behest of the lobby therefore have started probe to stop such further revelations.
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Guess people try to do cover up and talk about ethics..... the table has just turned and its time for carrier of democracy(read some journalist) to answer some tuff question
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This is true journalism. NDTV, Times Group, and all leading media houses should be replaced. The fact they didn't cover this story in the beginning only points to the level all of them have been complicit in this game.
Thanks for exposing this most suspected racket. It also shows that the level of corruption has reached the heights not seen before. Only shows that India is corrupt to the CORE.
Great job...this is patriotism at its best.
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Open has become the WikiLeaks of India...great job...
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Thanks for exposing whats been long suspected, India's corporate houses, politicians and now media houses are corrupt to the core. If things don't change structurally and soon, I wouldn't be surprised that some drastic events may be in the offing in India's future.
Great job for showing Indians what true journalism is all about.
All Indian media houses should follow your path.
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Are these journos or some pimps
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My god where will this country go from here !!!! These journalists , politicians and corporates are doing nothing short of sacrilege of indian dmocracy!! 600 crore for a cabinet post , a journalist exclaming just on the magnitude of the figure ,but to move on as if power brokering and corporate lobbying is a mundane affair, finding it no worth of reporting ; corroborating medias full liaison in the lynching of democracy..
Why blame maoists for questioning india's credibility as a democracy, this shameful soliciting itself corroborates it.. SHAME SHAME SHAME..
Great work OPEN magazine..
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This is a debacle of Ms. Barkha Dutt and Vir Sanghvi. Look how brazenly she continues to make an appearance on NDTV. NDTV and HT's image is also diluted with the decision to retain her. At least Vir Sanghvi has some shame that he volunteraly discontinued his column in HT namely "The Counterpoint" (Paid version). But Barkha has become a defiant, it seems she has taken a cue from Politics which she is covering ever since.
I discontinued following her on Twitter. Shame on her!
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Guys @ Open.. I've stopped watching Indian news completely for a while now as it's mostly a joke.
Thanks a lot for doing this, as it gives hope to people like me, and my guess is probably there are millions like me. It's important to revive faith in News organizations.
Fan of Open now.. Where do I send the check? :) Thanks
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Such a Chameleon Radia is trying to change the whole system of politics in the country, manipulating each and every thing how ever she can so that the already corrupt politicians will be will pay her a big load of crapp which even the income tax dept will never even see(hoping they are not in the loop) lol. Shes already got her new Jaguar and theres no investigation into how much money shes made in the telecom spectrum scan and who knows how many more skeletons hidden in the wardrobe. EVERYTHING from GOVT to POLITICS to BUSINESS is all bullcrapp in this country being even puppetted so easily even in the hands of such low life people. Goddamn all these corrupt. Our country will never develop ever if these people are still existing. Even the courts nor people can ever do anything to them. They just choose whoever they want and there will always be people like her who will just communicate what the parties or companies want and make it happen. Thats why India will never have any growth from developing to Developed country ever!!! Media, Politics and Industrialists rule the country and will keep doing it forever. It was never in the hands of people and will never ever be one!!!
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I've for long been an ardent admirer of Vir Sanghvi, so obviously i am deeply hurt to know that he was working as an interlocutor on behalf of a corporate wheeler dealer. Was he on her payroll? Were all his COUNTERPOINTS dictated by one or the other such lobbyist?
This is truly SAD as well as utterly SHAMEFUL!
Nevertheless Vir, I would continue to respect your writing abilities, but somewhere the credibility would always be in doubt!!!
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I don't know about the DMK issue but if you read the Counterpoint on the Ambanis he doesn't take Anil's or Mukesh's side and in fact writes an opinionated piece to tell the Ambanis to stop making a media circus. http://www.virsanghvi.com/CounterPoint-ArticleDetail.aspx?ID=342 Barkha Dutt sounds more culpable but to be fair to Vir all you can state that he is lying to a source about what kind of column he will end up writing to get more information which is OK in my book. Still, the Open magazine expose is a very interesting one.
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