Journalists asked for ‘character certificate’ to cover PM Modi’s visit to Himachal
Journalists have been asked to produce a character certificate for security pass to cover the program of PM Narendra Modi, who is coming to Himachal to give various gifts on the occasion of Dussehra. This order of the district administration has created a big controversy. All eyes are on the Prime Minister’s visit on Wednesday after the last rally in the state on September 24 was canceled due to inclement weather.
Not only journalists associated with private news channels, print and digital media, but representatives of All India Radio (AIR) and Doordarshan have also been asked to bring certificates of ‘character verification’. Regarding this, the police had also issued an official notification on 29 September 2022. In the notification, the District Public Relations Officer (DPRO) has been asked to give a list of all press correspondents, photographers, videographers and teams of Doordarshan and All India Radio along with their ‘certificate of character verification’.
“The certificate of character verification will be given by the office of the Deputy Superintendent of Police, CID, Bilaspur,” the notification said. The decision of the journalists to attend the rally or meeting will be decided by this office. Responding to the police notification, Aam Aadmi Party spokesperson Pankaj Pandit said that in his 22-year career in journalism, he is seeing such a ‘bizarre’ notification for the first time.
Pandit said, ‘Modi ji is not visiting the state for the first time. The demand for production of character certificate is outrageous and an attempt to curb the activities of the media. Himachal Congress Committee chief spokesperson Naresh Chauhan also condemned the administration’s notification and said that the move was against the freedom of the media.
DPRO said – character certificate mandatory
On the other hand DPRO Bilaspur refused to accept official identity card for issuance of security pass saying that character certificate is mandatory for this. DPRO Kuldeep Guleria said, ‘This formality is mandatory for everyone. The SP and CID are asking for certificates of character verification. The surprising thing is that while character verification certificates are being sought from journalists, thousands of people who are brought to attend the rally will not need any identity proof.
PM Modi to inaugurate AIIMS in Himachal
Let us tell you that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Himachal Pradesh on Wednesday. He will inaugurate the newly built All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Bilaspur. According to a statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), Modi will inaugurate and lay foundation stones of various projects worth Rs 3,650 crore during this period. The PMO said that the Prime Minister will inaugurate AIIMS in Bilaspur on October 5 at 11.30 am. The foundation stone of this AIIMS was laid by Prime Minister Modi in 2017. After inaugurating and laying the foundation stone, he will also address a public meeting. The Prime Minister will also attend the Kullu Dussehra celebrations. Among the projects that the Prime Minister will lay the foundation stone for is the four-laning of the 31-km-long National Highway between Pinjore and Nalagarh. Will also lay the foundation for other projects.
