KR Malkani, a veteran journalist who was the youngest and longest-serving editor of Organiser and Panchjanya. He bravely fought against the dictatorial attitude of India’s first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru.
KR Malkani, a veteran journalist and former editor of Organiser and Panchjanya, never believed that Nationalism was a hindrance in discharging his duties as a journalist, and he bravely fought against the dictatorial attitude of India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, said veteran journalist Kanchan Gupta.
Shri Malkani took over the editorial responsibility of Organiser in 1948 and continued till 1982. In-between, he also took over the editorial responsibility of a sister publication , The Motherland, from 1971-75.
From day one, he questioned the government, headed by Jawaharlal Nehru, over the plight of Hindus in East and West Pakistan. He also vigorously took up the extrajudicial killings of Communists in the then Madras Presidency.
Gupta said, “This irked Nehru. Nehru did not like the contrarian view coming out and that too in a pesky paper-like Organiser.”
Using the might of the government, Prime Minister Nehru tried to suppress the voice of Organiser and Shri Malkani. Shri Malkani went to the court against it and won the case.
Kanchan Gupta, who is currently a senior adviser in the Union Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, talked about ‘Journalism and Nationalism: Complementary or Contradictory? (Revisiting the Legacy of Shri KR Malkani), organised by Organiser, Panchjanya and the Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC).
Recalling his first meeting with Shri KR Malkani, Gupta said, “When I visited Shri Malkani for the first time in winter of 1991 in BJP’s Ashoka Road office, I was surprised to find that Shri Malkani’s office room was even bigger than Shri LK Advani’s. At 3 pm every day, his room will become a coffee house. He was immensely respected by the BJP leadership.”
Former Prime Minister Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee requested Shri Malkani to help Shri LK Advani when Shri Advani first shifted to Delhi.
Shri Malkani, who also pioneered Indo-Tibetan Friendship Forum, encouraged Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyaya to write his column ‘Political Diary’ for Organiser. He also encouraged L K Advani to write his column about films for Organiser.
Shri Malkani was born in Sindh (Now in Pakistan) on November 19, 1921. After quitting his job as a lecturer at DG National College, he started as a journalist in Hindustan Times. But, he soon left Hindustan Times to join Organiser.
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