NL Hafta

In the latest episode of NL Hafta, Abhinandan Sekhri is joined by the usual gang of Raman Kirpal, Manisha Pande and Madhu Trehan, as well as Nitin A Gokhle, a national security analyst, and Samrat, a journalist and author. The conversation kicks off with Indo-Pak tension, with Abhinandan asking Nitin about the details of the air strikes on JeM camps and the non-credible information that flowed with it. Nitin rules out the possibility of ascertaining the "number of terrorists killed in the strike". However, he says: “To me, the significance of the strike was not in numbers, it was about crossing the red line … and planning.” Madhu explains the reportage of the air strike, saying, “When we get statements from the government during the conflict, I think it has to be just context with government sources.” She says it prevents journalists from jumping the gun and puts the onus on government. The panel is unanimously annoyed about the unconfirmed and propagandist reportage by sections of Indian media. Manisha feels it warrants criticism from the international community. When asked about dos and don’ts for defence correspondents, Nitin says, “Don’t be in a hurry to give out everything you get … It’s more important what you don’t write than what you write.” The conversation moves to a discussion on the protests in Arunachal Pradesh over the Permanent Residence Certificates. Abhinandan says: “I don’t get that feeling when I went to Arunachal … it doesn’t seem like a kind of place which I would imagine would burn deputy CM’s house down.” He asks Samrat why it reached such a level. Samrat says, “Politics of indigeneity is very much there, inter-tribal rivalry … tribal divide … these are actually big things.” He adds that tourists don't face things like this. The discussion covers Caravan’s article where reporter Ajaz Ashraf tabulated soldiers killed in Pulwama on a caste basis. Raman says, “The sample that they have taken is very, very small … I think caste still dominates the class.” Manisha says, “I think the article borrows its narrative from … American media after the Iraq war. I have a central problem with one saying that the war in India is driven by Hindu nationalism—because Kashmir and Chhattisgarh where most of the CRPF is deployed have existed before Hindu nationalism rose.” Listen up! There’s more.