NEW DELHI: BJP on Thursday announced "boycott" of the CNN-IBN and its affliated channels, saying it was "deeply dismayed" over its decision not to telecast the sting operation on the 'cash-for-vote' scandal.
"The BJP has been compelled to decide that it will boycott CNN-IBN and channels related to it till such time as the unedited tapes of the 'notes-for-votes' scandal are telecast," senior party leader M Venkaiah Naidu announced here.
He said till the tapes are telecast, no BJP functionary in Delhi or in the states will appear on the CNN-IBN programmes, whether in the studios or outside.
"The BJP believes that the channel's decision to withhold the tapes from the public seriously compromises the freedom of press," he said and regretted that instead of upholding the right to information, "CNN-IBN has resorted to the suppression of truth".
Noting that the job of the media is to bring out the truth, Naidu said the BJP is "deeply dismayed" by the channel's decision and its contention "flied in the face of all accepted ethics of professional journalism."
He said "only one conclusion can be drawn from the channel's volte-face: It has come under severe pressure from the government and/ or certain corporate houses".
Naidu said the three BJP MPs acted like "whistle-blowers" and more than a week has passed but the channel has not telecast the tapes regarding "one of the most sordid events in India's Parliamentary history."
Attacking the CNN-IBN, he said it was not for a TV channel or newspaper to complete investigation and pronounce a verdict. "That job must be left to investigating agencies and the judicial process."
