Bhopal: “Mamaji Manikchand Vajpayee was not only among the best editors but also a committed soldier of democracy during Emergency. He went to jail for protection of the democracy. He was a journalist committed to a cause,” said senior journalist Shri Ram Bahadur Rai, while speaking at the discussion organised by Vishwa Samvad Kendra on March 3. A picture of the late Manikchand Vajpayee was also installed in the Vishwa Samvad Kendra. Senior journalists Shri Rajendra Sharma and Shri Mahesh Srivastava were also present.
Shri Ram Bahadur Rai speaking at the function in Bhopal
All the speakers came down heavily against the state government’s decision to discontinue the national award instituted in the memory of Mamaji. They urged the government to revive the award as it was for the best journalists. The birth centenary of Mama is beginning in October 2019.
Shri Ram Bahadur Rai further said the mixture of capital, power and industry could not be called journalism. “The objective of ‘dhyeynishth’ journalism is not power, but the high ideals. Circumstances decide the cause for an individual. Mamaji has been among the journalists who never compromised his ideals. His work ‘Aapatkaleen Sangharsh Gatha’ was the outcome of two years’ of hard work.
Shri Rajendra Sharma recalled his association with Mamaji. “He was associated with a particular ideology, but he never imposed his ideology in journalism,” he added. The composer of state song Shri Mahesh Srivastava said the nation and motherland are the centres of ‘dhyeyanishth’ journalism. But, unfortunately, many media houses are today committed to money only. The journalism of Mamaji was for the freedom of the country and the cultural values, he added.
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