Photo: (From left) G Sreedathan, Editor-in-Chief, indusscrolls.com, Prof Richard Hay, MP, Lok Sabha, J Nandakumar, Samyojak, Prajna Pravah, RSS, Nitin Sharma, management expert
“Although nationalist digital media outlets are small in number, their existence is very crucial for the nation. There is a battle going on between India and Bharat. And in this battle one cannot remain a moot spectator and digital media can play a great role in promoting national cause,” said J Nandakumar, Samyojak, Prajna Pravah, while speaking at a panel discussion on social media, organized jointly by National Book Trust and Media Scan, on the sidelines of World Book Fair, New Delhi, recently. Nandakumar observed that some of the so-called liberal digital media outlets with no national commitment have given in to the lure of the lucre and become a tool in the hands of rival forces. Money is their prime motive.
Praising profusely indusscrolls.com, he said more such websites are the need of the hour. Despite financial problems, they have never compromised on the core ideals. “Their existence is crucial for the nation and for the well-being of the world,” he added.
Nandakumar drew the attention of the gathering to a recent write-up carried in a Left-liberal website which argued that Sabarimala temple in Kerala was a Buddhist temple. So far there have been no literary or archeological evidence to suggest that it was a Buddhist temple. “No Buddhist has ever claimed their rights over the temple.” Still these websites propagate such stories to trigger social schism. On the other hand, there was a huge body of archaeological and literary evidence about the existence of Ram Temple at Ayodhya. Former senior Archeological Survey of India officer KK Muhammad had categorically said that “Comrade Irfan Habib and Comrade Romila Thapar” had sabotaged an amicable settlement between Hindus and Muslims. But these websites won’t write anything about it, Nandakumar said. They are on the same page with those who stand for Bharat ki barbadi, he argued.
Speaking at the event, Prof Richard Hay, Lok Sabha MP, said the digital media has a responsibility to bring out the richness and profundity of Indian culture. He said the cultural values define a society. The digital media can contribute immensely to popularize it.
Talking about resource crunch for nationalist websites, editor-in-chief of indusscrolls.com G Sreedathan said there is an ecosystem in the country that supports proliferation of a particular kind of digital media outlets. He said the main purpose of indusscrolls.com is not to make money. “Money is important, because we want to take it to people. But there is a bigger purpose behind indusscrolls.com. We have our task cut out: promotion of Indian culture in the right spirit. There is no compromise on that.”
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