Monday 27 August 2012
DYAL SINGH MAJITHIA PERSONALITY PROFILE
The
establishment of The Tribune was a noteworthy contribution by him. The aim of
the newspaper was to spread the doctrine of Indian nationalism and to bring
about unity in a society that was afflicted by differences on questions of
religion, caste, language and region.
How The Tribune was launched
SEVERAL people have claimed the credit for giving Dyal Singh the idea of starting a newspaper in English from Lahore. The foremost among them was Surendranath Banerjea, who wrote that he persuaded Dyal Singh to start the paper. Rai Bahadur Mul Raj wrote that he and Jogendra Chandra Bose requested Dyal Singh to start a newspaper to carry on the crusade for education in Punjab on Western lines through the medium of English. This, he says, was in 1877 or 1878.
SEVERAL people have claimed the credit for giving Dyal Singh the idea of starting a newspaper in English from Lahore. The foremost among them was Surendranath Banerjea, who wrote that he persuaded Dyal Singh to start the paper. Rai Bahadur Mul Raj wrote that he and Jogendra Chandra Bose requested Dyal Singh to start a newspaper to carry on the crusade for education in Punjab on Western lines through the medium of English. This, he says, was in 1877 or 1878.
Bipin Chandra Pal, a member of the
famous Lal-Bal-Pal trio, who was on the staff of Dyal Singh’s paper for a few
months, says that the Sardar started the paper at the suggestion of his Bengali
friends in Lahore. One issue of The Tribune said that the idea was the Sardar’s
own. This could well be so.
During his sojourn abroad for two
years, Dyal Singh had seen the importance of the role played by an independent
Press. Within months of his return from Europe, he came into contact with
Surendranath Banerjea and discussed his ideas in regard to starting an English
language newspaper from Lahore. Soon he was involved in the controversy over
the Vernacular Press Act.
The Indian Association’s meeting in
the Town Hall in Calcutta had nominated him to be a member of the steering
committee set up to oversee the implementation of the Press Act. This was in
1878. Surendranath Banerjea was certainly the person who encouraged him. So
also were his close Brahmo Bengali friends in Lahore, particularly P.C.
Chatterjee, a senior member of the Lahore
Bar, who later rose to be a Judge of the Chief Court; and Jogendra Chandra
Bose, another member of the Lahore Bar.
The launching of a newspaper in
Punjab was not an easy task at that time. Printing machinery had to be procured
and the staff had to be recruited. Dyal Singh solicited the help of
Surendranath Banerjea. The latter promised all help. Banerjea arranged the
printing Press. He also recommended the name of Sitalakanta Chatterjee for
appointment on the editorial staff. Being young, he was appointed Sub-Editor,
because the newspaper must have some maturer person for the Editor’s job.
Thanks to Dyal Singh’s Brahmo Bengali friends’ help, he was able to get the
services of Seetalchandra Mookerjee of Bhowanipore in Calcutta, who lived in
Upper India and was editing his own paper, The Indian People, from Allahabad.
He promised to edit the proposed Lahore paper from Allahabad itself.
Trained journalists being scarce in
those days, Dyal Singh agreed to the arrangement. Seetalchandra Mookerjee sent
the editorials and special articles from Allahabad, Sitalakanta Chatterjee
looking after the work at Lahore. Dyal Singh himself made the other
appointments. He recruited P.K.Chatterjee who had done some scissoring and
pasting job at The Pioneer’s sister publication in Lahore, The Civil and
Military Gazette. For the job of the printer he fixed up with R. Williams, who
had worked for The Indian Chronicle.
The first issue of The Tribune,
which came out on February 2, 1881, took up the cause of modern education in
Punjab through the medium of English. Week after week it carried as many as 25
articles in addition to editorials demolishing the arguments of the
"orientalists" — Dr Leitner and his supporters. The other members of
the Panjab University College Senate asked how Dyal Singh could continue to be
a member of the Senate when his paper was opposing the policies of Panjab
University College, which supported Dr Leitner. Dyal Singh resigned his
membership of the Senate, and The Tribune continued its crusade. As the
President of the Lahore branch of the Indian Association, he involved the
headquarters of the organisation in Calcutta to take up the issue with the
Secretary of State for India in London. The crusade was crowned with success
when the British government agreed in 1882 to the establishment of Panjab
University on the lines of the universities in Calcutta, Bombay and Madras. The
battle was won.
Dyal Singh’s Bengali Brahmo friends
played an important role in making The Tribune more than a mere provincial
paper. Modelled on The Bengalee, it was a paper which claimed to represent the
whole of Upper India. It took up not only all-India issues but also
international issues, such as they were in the last century. The number of the
copies of The Tribune sold outside Punjab was more than the number of the
copies sold inside the province.
Significantly, the first issue
championed the cause of The Statesman Defence Fund, being raised to fight for
The Statesman’s pro-India Editor, Robert Knight, who had been sued by a
Hyderabad nobleman at the instance of diehard British bureaucrats in India, who
had been upset at the exposure by The Statesman (through its London edition) of
the working of British bureaucrats here. Dyal Singh himself was a member of The
Statesman Defence Committee. The Tribune took up all the public causes, and its
voice was taken note of. It is said that one Lieut-Governor of Punjab advised a
delegation meeting him to ventilate their grievances through the columns of The
Tribune. British civilians of Punjab felt so unhappy as to tell their
compatriots that the province was being ruled by the Lieut-Governor and The
Tribune, and the civil servants were nowhere.
The exposure of
public wrongs once led to a famous defamation case, filed in 1890, by a
Superintendent of Police against Dyal Singh and the Editor of The Tribune. One
of the factors mentioned by the Superintendent of Police was that Dyal Singh
was a nationalist and had allowed the compound of his baronial mansion in
Amritsar to be used for a lecture by a Congress agitator named Allah Ram.
Thursday 23 August 2012
Pioneers of the Indian print media
A chronicle of time
26 February 2012
A review by krishnan srinivasan
NEWSPAPER.. THE STATESMAN
It is always good to see books, whether by historians, as in this case, or by journalists, about the pioneer organs of the Indian print media. This publication celebrates 130 years after the first issue of The Tribune in Lahore in 1881. Its founder and sole proprietor for 17 years was Dyal Singh Majithia, a far sighted social and educational reformer bent on establishing a paper free of sectarian, political and commercial bias; a mouthpiece for education, including for women, employment and economic reform. Majithia was attracted to Brahmo Samaj, Theosophy, and Bengali associates like Surendranath Banerjee and Vivekananda. He chose the name because a Roman tribune was selected by the people to represent their interests. Majithia willed the paper after his death to a Board of Trustees of public-spirited people. The Board never tried to influence editorial policy. The paper began as weekly, one hundred years after the Bengal Gazette of James Hickey. In 1886 it came out bi-weekly, in 1893 tri-weekly, in 1906 daily. Initially catering to a small English-knowing intelligentsia, it took up popular causes like widow-remarriage. The paper began to be regarded as a ‘chief adviser’ to the British government, but cooperation with the British did not prevent it from condemning unjust and arbitrary actions of British officials, such as during the Multan riots of 1881. From 1885, The Tribune supported the Indian National Congress, and by the early years of the 20th century, became patriotic and nationalist. Anticipating the future, it urged the Indian National Congress to send fewer petitions and instead sponsor mass mobilisation and self-reliance. From 1905 and the Bengal Partition, it criticised Curzon for dividing Hindus and Muslims and urged education for, and dialogue with, Muslims to bring about unity. Reflecting the growth of public opinion, The Tribune became nationalist, and moved from exposing petty bureaucracy to opposing the Raj itself. It took a pro-Hindu attitude against perceived favour to Muslims before and after the Minto/Morley reforms of 1909, but even then, The Tribune did not envisage Indian progress to political sovereignty as such, but concentrated on general service to humanity. It opposed the move of the capital to Delhi as a divorce from educated middle class opinion. The paper eventually struck a balance between regional and national interests and a wider global range, and after 1914, it took an anti-Empire position. From 1917 to 1944, the paper was edited by Kali Nath Ray and started to achieve national repute, known for being fearless and critical. It supported Gandhi after his return from South Africa, and shed its previous moderation. Its peak year, according to author Dutta, was 1919, when it opposed the Rowlatt Act and the Punjab Lieutenant- Governor O’Dwyer. It lauded CR Das for bringing Muslims into public life, and Subash Bose, though critical of his leaving India and seeking help from a foreign country. The paper supported Gandhi’s swaraj, and from 1921, the Akali movement. Dutta’s text helpfully covers the paper’s advertisements as an indicator of popular trends, and notes that The Tribune stood against boycotts and extremism, and did not promote swadeshi goods to the exclusion of others, mainly because it still catered to the elite classes. It also opposed any form of violence, and stood for justice. Thus it condemned Jinnah’s two-nation theory, communalism and Partition, and even as late as July 1947, it was appealing in a utopian fashion for peace and Muslim-Hindu brotherhood. Just before it had to close down in Lahore, it praised Jinnah’s 11 August speech to the Constituent Assembly, and hoped Pakistan would be democratic and modern. In 1947, the paper had to relocate to Simla, and by as early as 25 September 1947 it had resumed publication. By January the next year it increased its page count to four. From Simla it moved to Ambala in 1948, where it continued publication despite the Pakistani bombing in the 1965 war; and finally to Chandigarh in 1969. Haryana, Punjab and Chandigarh all wanted equal prominence, which created dilemmas. The paper fell out with chief minister Kairon, which led to the editor’s resignation, and later with the Haryana chief minister Bansi Lal. Throughout, The Tribune stood for restraint and dignity, a moderate political democracy, moderate nationalism and economic justice, though it was also known for a ‘combative streak’. It did not fail to criticize the narrow sectarianism, intrigue and corruption in the Congress Party. It attacked the politically-motivated supersession of judges by Indira Gandhi, and after the High Court unseated her, urged her to resign. It continued to press for that even after she won a reprieve from the Supreme Court, and like The Indian Express and The Statesman, was blacklisted in the emergency. Madhavan Nair, editor from 1962 to 1977, suffered a mental breakdown. Describing Bluestar as ‘the most unfortunate and traumatic episode not only in the history of Punjab but of the whole country’, Dutta describes how, in remaining neutral, editor Prem Bhatia received threats from terrorists. The paper rejected that Sikhs and Hindus belonged to separate nations and extolled the Punjabi language as a unifying force. It showed understanding of Punjabi complexities and offered sound advice and warnings, all to no avail. It was also indignant over the anti-Sikh riots of 1984. Apart from Ray, five editors receive special mention: Madhavan Nair, Bhatia, Jaisingh, Narayanan and HK Dua. The Tribune became a national paper during Dua’s tenure from 2003 to 2010. The paper’s circulation in 1920 was 6000; in 1959, it was 20,000. In its first 25 years, there appeared only one photo; after the early 1980s, photos appeared on the front page. From 1970, there were cartoons. In 1978 Hindi and Punjabi versions appeared in the form of the Dainik Tribune and Punjabi Tribune. It started to run book reviews. In the 1990s, there started a Delhi edition and an Internet service. The paper faces two challenges at present: from the Internet and from national papers with far greater resources. Dutta’s book follows two anthologies, in 1981 and 2008, and a previous history in 1986. The narrative is practically a story of Indian politics because The Tribune is indispensable for any research on Punjabi society, culture and politics and the history of North India. The author navigates between narrative and assessment and handles the material with some skill. He follows editorial policy as far as possible chronologically, but this inevitably leads to repetition and staccato jerks in the story when an issue lasts several years or even decades. Consequently, the book details almost every cause that was taken up, but rarely tells us how the matter concluded. The book is by its nature obviously an edulcoration, but Dutta attempts some objectivity, reporting that The Tribune took ‘complex positions’ with ‘verbal jugglery’. He stresses that throughout its history the paper never lost its distinctive character of autonomy and independent expression. Before 1947, the text hardly ever mentions the work of any Tribune staffers or correspondents. About two-thirds of the book deals with the years before Indian independence, and with a wealth of detail. Post-partition, the chapters in the book are much shorter, though the records available would have been more accessible. There are curiously only eight pages on the Emergency and ten on Bluestar. The longest and most interesting chapter in the second section is about five editors and their contributions, from Madhavan Nair to Dua. Three later chapters, though brief, on Trustees, Management, Finance and Services and Amenities are of scant interest, but were perhaps considered needed to round out the picture. They could have found a better place as annexes. Madhavan Nair’s dictum: ‘editorial content is what sells a paper and is thus responsible for its circulation and advertisement revenue. It is almost responsible for the degree of public esteem in which the paper is held’ may not be all that relevant today. But the ‘reliable information and deep analysis’ enjoined on the paper by its founder will always command respect and credibility.
26 February 2012
A review by krishnan srinivasan
NEWSPAPER.. THE STATESMAN
It is always good to see books, whether by historians, as in this case, or by journalists, about the pioneer organs of the Indian print media. This publication celebrates 130 years after the first issue of The Tribune in Lahore in 1881. Its founder and sole proprietor for 17 years was Dyal Singh Majithia, a far sighted social and educational reformer bent on establishing a paper free of sectarian, political and commercial bias; a mouthpiece for education, including for women, employment and economic reform. Majithia was attracted to Brahmo Samaj, Theosophy, and Bengali associates like Surendranath Banerjee and Vivekananda. He chose the name because a Roman tribune was selected by the people to represent their interests. Majithia willed the paper after his death to a Board of Trustees of public-spirited people. The Board never tried to influence editorial policy. The paper began as weekly, one hundred years after the Bengal Gazette of James Hickey. In 1886 it came out bi-weekly, in 1893 tri-weekly, in 1906 daily. Initially catering to a small English-knowing intelligentsia, it took up popular causes like widow-remarriage. The paper began to be regarded as a ‘chief adviser’ to the British government, but cooperation with the British did not prevent it from condemning unjust and arbitrary actions of British officials, such as during the Multan riots of 1881. From 1885, The Tribune supported the Indian National Congress, and by the early years of the 20th century, became patriotic and nationalist. Anticipating the future, it urged the Indian National Congress to send fewer petitions and instead sponsor mass mobilisation and self-reliance. From 1905 and the Bengal Partition, it criticised Curzon for dividing Hindus and Muslims and urged education for, and dialogue with, Muslims to bring about unity. Reflecting the growth of public opinion, The Tribune became nationalist, and moved from exposing petty bureaucracy to opposing the Raj itself. It took a pro-Hindu attitude against perceived favour to Muslims before and after the Minto/Morley reforms of 1909, but even then, The Tribune did not envisage Indian progress to political sovereignty as such, but concentrated on general service to humanity. It opposed the move of the capital to Delhi as a divorce from educated middle class opinion. The paper eventually struck a balance between regional and national interests and a wider global range, and after 1914, it took an anti-Empire position. From 1917 to 1944, the paper was edited by Kali Nath Ray and started to achieve national repute, known for being fearless and critical. It supported Gandhi after his return from South Africa, and shed its previous moderation. Its peak year, according to author Dutta, was 1919, when it opposed the Rowlatt Act and the Punjab Lieutenant- Governor O’Dwyer. It lauded CR Das for bringing Muslims into public life, and Subash Bose, though critical of his leaving India and seeking help from a foreign country. The paper supported Gandhi’s swaraj, and from 1921, the Akali movement. Dutta’s text helpfully covers the paper’s advertisements as an indicator of popular trends, and notes that The Tribune stood against boycotts and extremism, and did not promote swadeshi goods to the exclusion of others, mainly because it still catered to the elite classes. It also opposed any form of violence, and stood for justice. Thus it condemned Jinnah’s two-nation theory, communalism and Partition, and even as late as July 1947, it was appealing in a utopian fashion for peace and Muslim-Hindu brotherhood. Just before it had to close down in Lahore, it praised Jinnah’s 11 August speech to the Constituent Assembly, and hoped Pakistan would be democratic and modern. In 1947, the paper had to relocate to Simla, and by as early as 25 September 1947 it had resumed publication. By January the next year it increased its page count to four. From Simla it moved to Ambala in 1948, where it continued publication despite the Pakistani bombing in the 1965 war; and finally to Chandigarh in 1969. Haryana, Punjab and Chandigarh all wanted equal prominence, which created dilemmas. The paper fell out with chief minister Kairon, which led to the editor’s resignation, and later with the Haryana chief minister Bansi Lal. Throughout, The Tribune stood for restraint and dignity, a moderate political democracy, moderate nationalism and economic justice, though it was also known for a ‘combative streak’. It did not fail to criticize the narrow sectarianism, intrigue and corruption in the Congress Party. It attacked the politically-motivated supersession of judges by Indira Gandhi, and after the High Court unseated her, urged her to resign. It continued to press for that even after she won a reprieve from the Supreme Court, and like The Indian Express and The Statesman, was blacklisted in the emergency. Madhavan Nair, editor from 1962 to 1977, suffered a mental breakdown. Describing Bluestar as ‘the most unfortunate and traumatic episode not only in the history of Punjab but of the whole country’, Dutta describes how, in remaining neutral, editor Prem Bhatia received threats from terrorists. The paper rejected that Sikhs and Hindus belonged to separate nations and extolled the Punjabi language as a unifying force. It showed understanding of Punjabi complexities and offered sound advice and warnings, all to no avail. It was also indignant over the anti-Sikh riots of 1984. Apart from Ray, five editors receive special mention: Madhavan Nair, Bhatia, Jaisingh, Narayanan and HK Dua. The Tribune became a national paper during Dua’s tenure from 2003 to 2010. The paper’s circulation in 1920 was 6000; in 1959, it was 20,000. In its first 25 years, there appeared only one photo; after the early 1980s, photos appeared on the front page. From 1970, there were cartoons. In 1978 Hindi and Punjabi versions appeared in the form of the Dainik Tribune and Punjabi Tribune. It started to run book reviews. In the 1990s, there started a Delhi edition and an Internet service. The paper faces two challenges at present: from the Internet and from national papers with far greater resources. Dutta’s book follows two anthologies, in 1981 and 2008, and a previous history in 1986. The narrative is practically a story of Indian politics because The Tribune is indispensable for any research on Punjabi society, culture and politics and the history of North India. The author navigates between narrative and assessment and handles the material with some skill. He follows editorial policy as far as possible chronologically, but this inevitably leads to repetition and staccato jerks in the story when an issue lasts several years or even decades. Consequently, the book details almost every cause that was taken up, but rarely tells us how the matter concluded. The book is by its nature obviously an edulcoration, but Dutta attempts some objectivity, reporting that The Tribune took ‘complex positions’ with ‘verbal jugglery’. He stresses that throughout its history the paper never lost its distinctive character of autonomy and independent expression. Before 1947, the text hardly ever mentions the work of any Tribune staffers or correspondents. About two-thirds of the book deals with the years before Indian independence, and with a wealth of detail. Post-partition, the chapters in the book are much shorter, though the records available would have been more accessible. There are curiously only eight pages on the Emergency and ten on Bluestar. The longest and most interesting chapter in the second section is about five editors and their contributions, from Madhavan Nair to Dua. Three later chapters, though brief, on Trustees, Management, Finance and Services and Amenities are of scant interest, but were perhaps considered needed to round out the picture. They could have found a better place as annexes. Madhavan Nair’s dictum: ‘editorial content is what sells a paper and is thus responsible for its circulation and advertisement revenue. It is almost responsible for the degree of public esteem in which the paper is held’ may not be all that relevant today. But the ‘reliable information and deep analysis’ enjoined on the paper by its founder will always command respect and credibility.
Monday 13 August 2012
Saturday 11 August 2012
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)