As the Government’s crackdown on a large number of NGO’s violating various norms and rules continues, Teesta Setalvad, activist and founder of trusts like the Sabrang trust, found herself under the CBI scanner. The allegations against Setalvad are multiple. She is alleged to have cheated victims of 2002 Godhra riots, and “embezzled funds” collected in their name. One of the riot victims from Gulbarg housing society had filed a complaint against Teesta and her husband Javed Anand. The alleged misappropriation of funds is said to be to the tune of Rs 1.51 crores.
Further, it was also found that her trusts had violated FCRA norms. Sabrang Communication and Publishing Pvt Limited, with which Teesta is associated, recieved $ 2.9 lakh from Ford Foundation as grant to “address communalism, caste-based discrimination in India, including media strategies”. But unlike the Sabrang Trust, this company was not registered under FCRA and hence was a violation.
To investigate on these allegations, CBI conducted searches at the residence and offices of Teesta Setalvad on 14th July 2015. CBI has as of now claimed that they have found documents supporting the allegations against. But this story is not about Teesta Setalvad. It is about her friends. No sooner did CBI raid this person accused of Financial Irregularities, the Adarsh Liberal coterie of Journalists took to twitter to support her, and the statements were almost identical.
Do you really need day long CBI raids at @TeestaSetalvad; Smacks of vindictiveness; reinforces @GhoshAmitav interview http://t.co/QwiPAU0OYj
— barkha dutt (@BDUTT) July 14, 2015
I’ve had many arguments with @TeestaSetalvad but govt using CBI raids in an FCRA case to crush her is shockingly vindictive &!self-defeating
— Shekhar Gupta (@ShekharGupta) July 14, 2015
Work of @TeestaSetalvad gave hope to many in Gujarat, she’s a bridge builder.We had our diffs, but CBI raid on her is shocking, vindictive
— Sagarika Ghose (@sagarikaghose) July 14, 2015
All the tweets above had the same tone to them: claiming CBI raids were not needed and action was vindictive. Do are neutral journalists realize they are supporting a person who is accused of Financial Irregularities? Because if they don, they will note that Lalit Modi is also in a similar, if not same position. He too is an accused, facing investigation for Financial Irregularities, albeit at much larger scale. Yet, when he is given an NOC to visit his ailing wife, media has a massive problem. And when another accused is probed by CBI, then too they have a problem. Double Standards? Or just saving one of their own? Further, CBI conducted the raid, armed with a court order. Are courts also vindictive?
Ironically, these are the same journalists who were demanding a CBI probe in the VYAPAM scam. CBI was free of Government interference then, but as soon as dear friend Teesta is involved, CBI becomes vindictive?
CBI probe in #AKillerCalledVyapam had become inevitable so why were BJP leaders aggressively arguing yesterday that not legally possible
— barkha dutt (@BDUTT) July 7, 2015
And Mr Truth vs Hype Sreenivasan Jain also tried his best to obfuscate the truth with his hype:
This again begs question: if main charge is of financial impropriety, why the heavy hand ?
— Sreenivasan Jain (@SreenivasanJain) July 14, 2015
If indeed Teesta is innocent, why are her friends shivering at the though of an investigation? Sreenivasan Jain even tried to portray that this was the first time CBI was raiding NGOs for financial impropriety:
By CBI ? Of NGO’s? Do cite examples. https://t.co/t7vnUVC0Db
— Sreenivasan Jain (@SreenivasanJain) July 14, 2015
But as @rajudasonline pointed out, Mr Jain had missed out on some Chhota-Mota bits of Truth. In March 2012 CBI had conducted similar searches on an organization claiming to be an NGO, for alleged FCRA violations. In that month itself, the Home Ministry had asked CBI to probe 12 NGOs for FCRA violations. So when CBI probes other NGOs, in UPA rule, Mr Jain has no problem. And when they probe Mr Jain’s friends, he goes crazy?
The entire media grilled ministers for alleged connections with an accused, but who will questions these self-appointed messiahs of truth when they shield similar offenders?
