Congratulations: The “POONCH TODAY” newspaper completes thirteen years successfully by strengthening nationalism in a border district known for various political and administrative blunders from 1985 onwards against the national interest, peace and harmony

Congratulations: The “POONCH TODAY” newspaper completes thirteen years successfully by strengthening nationalism in a border district known for various political and administrative blunders from 1985 onwards against the national interest, peace and harmony

When almighty Lord Shri Krishna stands by you, then even the word “impossible” says, “I am possible”, and the same has been witnessed by the “POONCH TODAY” newspaper right from day one when the newspaper was launched on 1st of July, 2013, by the then DC Poonch Sh Sajad Khan (JKAS) and the then SSP Poonch Sh Shamsheer Choudhary (JKPS). Starting a newspaper from a border district with no resources and a shortage of professional manpower was considered a tough task for anyone, because in the past 100 years of Poonch-Rajouri journalism history, no newspaper in any language was able to perform well for years and ultimately stopped publication within a few years due to one reason or another.

In addition to this negative history of Poonch-Rajouri journalism covering all aspects, which was sufficient to demoralize the morale of emerging journalists in the region as far as launching a newspaper was concerned, my personal speech impediment, which played a terrible role in my entire life in every field, was another solid reason that pressured me to remain on the back foot for decades because journalism is known for having effective communication skills to broadcast your views on different issues, but my utter desire to work for my nation proved heavier than all my previous terrible experiences and impediments of life, and ultimately, with the blessings of Lord Shri Krishna, I took the help of a pen and finally launched the newspaper on the 1st of July, 2013, after completing a master’s in journalism, which was a moral and ethical responsibility to be active in the field of journalism. Starting a newspaper in the Poonch district with a nationalist mindset and a commitment to selfless service was essential because the period before 2013 (after 1985 onwards), especially the years leading up to 2018, was marked by forces hostile to peace and nationalism that dominated the district administration, often acting against national interests; as a result, a number of political and administrative blunders with the silent support of some DCs, SSPs and the revenue department were carried out under the influence of forces who always stood against the national interest and peace. Clergy used to threaten the police, army, and civil administration on various accounts, and as a result, many unconstitutional and illegal decisions were taken in the past that were enough to demoralize the morale of nationalist forces in the region. For decades, bureaucrats and local leaders harassed minorities and nationalists in the region over various issues indirectly, leading these minorities to feel as though they were not living in Indian territory and that they would eventually migrate from the Poonch district. From the developmental point of view, visionless Poonch leadership and corrupt bureaucracy looted funds meant for development with the support of some self-styled agents of the administration unfortunately called ‘civil society’. Due to the big nexus of political leaders, civil society members and the successive administrations, the voices of the common people were never given attention; as a result, the district suffered a regular administrative deficit on the ground. Nationalist forces were always given a cold shoulder while clergy continued to dominate the affairs of the administration in one way or the other. Such were the terrible state of affairs in the Poonch district, as there were no nationalist voices that could challenge the system, which was purely working in the interest of forces inimical to peace and nationalism. Keeping that aspect in mind and to strengthen the spirit of nationalism in the border district of Poonch, I took the tough initiative of launching the “POONCH TODAY” newspaper despite facing various personal hurdles mentioned earlier, and right from day one, the war against corruption and anti-national elements was started, which has been going on up to the time of writing this piece, completing thirteen years of this toughest journey amid threats from everywhere. During this journey, many conspiracies were hatched against “POONCH TODAY” by some IAS, JKAS, and JKPS bureaucrats with the hidden support of some religious and political leaders to silence the strong voice of “POONCH TODAY”. Even my family was attacked by an arrogant, visionless and questionable-credentials bureaucrat who was heading the Poonch district as DC with the behind-the-curtains support of some religious and political leaders of a particular thought. These were the complete indications that some high-ranking bureaucrats also worked as agents of anti-national forces in curbing the nationalist voices in the region. Moreover, some important security-related chairs carried out a number of digital attacks against “POONCH TODAY” during the last few years, as they were not aware of the fact that the editor of the newspaper is also a professional software developer and could detect such things easily. They also took the services of some opinion leaders and a few unprofessional people in the media field to get all the information about “POONCH TODAY” silently. Rather than appreciating the selfless work of the newspaper in exposing the anti-nationals and corruption, the civil administration and other important chairs unfortunately, under the pressure of clergy, preferred to curb the truthful voice of the newspaper through various tricks, but they all ultimately failed in their evil designs because “POONCH TODAY” always stood with the truth. In addition to this, many allegations were levelled against “POONCH TODAY” that it was against a particular section of society and that it was launched by the RSS and BJP, and, likewise, many unimaginable allegations were made just to damage the credibility of the newspaper, but everyone was not aware of the fact that it was launched purely by a nationalist in the national interest with a spirit to strengthen the nationalism in addition to raising developmental issues. The journey of “POONCH TODAY” remained utmostly dangerous, but it was our pure intentions of working in the national interest and truth that the newspaper overcame every challenge thrown. We feel proud that nobody dares to call us an agent/tout of the administration or political leaders, as a large chunk of journalists have their self-interests and are always ready to sell their inner conscience for their petty interests by working as touts/agents for the important chairs. National service is in my genes, and for that, I need nothing from anywhere. Because of my pure intentions in the national interest, Lord Shri Krishna’s blessings stood by my side, and as a result, the “POONCH TODAY” English newspaper became the only newspaper in the nearly 100-year history of Poonch-Rajouri journalism before and after independence that has achieved this feat of crossing more than a decade of journalism with an approach of unparalleled high standards, nationalism, boldness, and integrity. Our journalism is known for its pure professionalism, genuineness, credibility, and policy of national interest. Despite the significant revolution in the field of journalism due to the rise of social media, print media continues to maintain its superiority in terms of credibility, authenticity, and strong professionalism. This is because print media continues to serve as a source of guidance for generations to come. The field of journalism has witnessed massive technological advancements, but on the other hand, due to a lack of professionally trained journalists in this elite profession, it has also become a profession known for blackmailing and running fake narratives to settle personal scores by those who don’t know the ABCs of journalism. Although the media in the sensitive Poonch-Rajouri region has played a big part in highlighting the concerns of the region, unfortunately, many attempts were made in the past to silence the strong media voices by some arrogant bureaucrats and political governments. However, despite facing massive troubles and bureaucratic threats for years, “POONCH TODAY” always remained at the forefront in exposing the wrong and never bowed down before any type of pressure because we don’t believe in fulfilling any type of self-interest from anywhere. Ignoring self-interest completely and standing for national interest is not everybody’s cup of tea in journalism, but “POONCH TODAY” has shown that only national interest matters the most and nothing else. We don’t believe in visiting offices for sycophancy and staying in the so-called good books of any officer of the army, police, civil administration, or political leader because we have no interest of any kind. Only national service is our motto. I also thank some people who stood by “POONCH TODAY” occasionally in strengthening the newspaper. We will persist in prioritizing national interest in our policy and will relentlessly pursue the publication of the truth at any cost. Raising developmental issues and exposing wrongdoers and anti-nationals bluntly is our trademark. Anyhow, with more than 22 lakh website/social media visitors/followers, the benchmark of selfless nationalist journalism set by “POONCH TODAY” in the Poonch-Rajouri region is incomparable, and it will continue to remain the same with the blessing of Lord Shri Krishna because we believe in the “nation first” policy and nothing else. Those bureaucrats, political leaders, religious leaders, and other anti-national forces that are still hatching conspiracies against “POONCH TODAY” in one way or the other must understand that the newspaper is being run by a staunch nationalist and not by a person of traditional sheep and goat ideology. I guess this one line is enough for them to indicate that no amount of pressure, threat, conspiracy, or other favors can silence the voice of “POONCH TODAY”. Every misadventure from anywhere against “POONCH TODAY” will be paid back heavily, like our previous record against the forces inimical to peace and the national interest. Jai Hind.

SALIL RAINA

(Owner & Editor)

M.A. Journalism & Mass Comm. (MAJMC)

M.Sc. Information Technology (M.Sc. (IT))