Emergency, cries united Opposition

New Delhi: The government order blacking out NDTV India for a day got the Opposition to speak in one voice for the second time this week, after having condemned the detentions of senior politicians in Delhi over the past two days. The charges of "undeclared Emergency" and "Emergency-like situation" dripped with irony: the Emergency is a stick the BJP loves to beat the Congress with. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had used it yet again on Wednesday, urging a gathering in Delhi never to forget those dark years of the '70s. Today, the boot was on the other foot. "NDTV ban is shocking. If government had issues with Pathankot coverage, there are provisions available. But ban shows an Emergency-like attitude," Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee tweeted. Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad agreed: "What kind of a democracy are you building? There is an Emergency-like situation in the country." Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal hoped "the whole media goes off the air for a day in solidarity". A couple of news websites have announced a blackout on November 9. Some BJP supporters, though, advocated a longer punishment and accused the government's critics of overreaction. But Opposition politicians, many of whom claim being starved of media space by design, insisted that silence was not an option. "Today it's NDTV; tomorrow it could be us," appeared the refrain. "Democracy is being throttled, asphyxiated. Media freedom is on the ventilator. NDTV banned is a warning signal; everyone must fight it," Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said. A joint statement from the Janata Dal United, CPI, National Congress Party and the Rashtriya Janata Dal found the government order "brazenly repressive". Former J&K chief minister Omar Abdullah saw a pattern in the crackdown on NDTV India and the detentions of Opposition leaders (such as Kejriwal and Rahul Gandhi) when they tried to meet the family of an ex-soldier who had committed suicide pressing for one-rank-one-pension. Lawyer Prashant Bhushan had already clubbed the two developments yesterday, soon after the government's intent regarding the TV channel had become evident. His Swaraj Abhiyan colleague, Yogendra Yadav, widened the ambit of the criticism, tweeting: "After institutions & judiciary, Modi Govt tries to arm twist media...." At a news conference, Mamata cited the "encounter" killing of Simi operatives in Bhopal and the Centre's mishandling of the events following the veteran's suicide to allege a "political vendetta". "If, for instance, some channel has fomented communal tension, speak to them. If necessary, lodge an FIR. But taking a channel off the air? This is unheard of. This is worse than the Emergency," she said. "Here (in Bengal) too channels had criticised us a lot, baselessly. But we never took any such acti