Freedom: The Right to Know and Tell

India was now a democracy. Freedom had become fundamental. To preserve this freedom, institutions stood tall on the gates of the country as gatekeepers against all odds. The Press Council stood today in India.

Fourth Pillar: Mass Media. Illustrated by Miloni Munipally: Visual Storyteller at ThisDay

Democracy is like a table. It stands on four pillars - Executive, Judiciary, Legislative, and Mass Media. If one pillar breaks, the entire table starts stumbling. If one makes laws, the other makes sure they are executed and the third sees that they are not broken. Mass media makes sure that all that happens in the other three does not remain a secret but is opened for all to be seen and judged as they would want to.

The transparency and genuineness of mass media are an indication of the freedom of our nation. It is the voice of the people and for the people that shine a light on the problems of the country and makes sure that every piece of information reaches even the last citizen of our country. It forms a base structure on which stands the execution of other rights. Mass media makes us informed citizens entitled to have our own opinion. A free press would make for freer citizens.

Still, politics is an evil game and the fourth pillar of democracy is not always secure and safe from the eyes of the demons who want to make the wrong use of it. Mass Media is of great power in the hands of those who control it.

To make sure that Indian Press always maintains a high standard and that it understands and cherishes the rights and responsibilities it has towards the citizens of the nation, to inspire and instil the feelings of public service in all those engaged in journalism, a Commission was set up in India, the Press Council of India on 4 July 1966. The body was an independent unit designed as a watchdog overall media.

This statutory, quasi-judicial body was set up in light of the Press Council Act of 1965. A Press Commissioner, Shri Justice J R Mudholkar, then a judge of Supreme Court, was appointed to look into the matters of the Council and to establish steps for the smooth functioning of the government body.

Eventually, Press Council emerged as a major organisation that makes sure that mass media remains an independent enterprise, that it walks on a code of ethics and that all channels of media and journalists always maintain high standards. Most of all, it makes sure that the government does not interfere with any of the mass media sources to destroy the freedom of the nation.