Tags:
Journalism of Courage
On March 5, Amitav Ranjan broke the story on the revival of the Dabhol Power Project after months of protracted negotiations.
The Express was the first to report on New Delhi’s decision to hire former US ambassador Robert Blackwill’s firm Barbour Griffith and Rogers, LLC, as its lobbyist.
On May 14, Sudhi Ranjan Sen revealed the CVC report that showed that the Indian Navy had bought the same equipment in 1995 from the same company first at Rs 36,704 and then at Rs 3,67,004 within a span of 10 days.
Though President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam gave his consent to the Right to Information Act, he was said to have suggested critical changes to the Act including maintaining the sanctity of communication between the head of state and head of government. Bhavna Vij-Aurora had the story first on June 24.
On July 31, Shishir Gupta, reporting from Gurez, brought alive the Indian Army’s operation against the Jaish-e-Mohammed infiltrators. The Indian Express was the first to reach the embattled area of operations.
On August 24, Shishir Gupta wrote on the significant turn the naval espionage case had taken, with evidence indicating that officers of the Directorate of Naval Operations were passing on information to a blacklisted Mumbai engineering firm, headed by a “distant relative” of the chief of naval staff, Admiral Arun Prakash.
On March 25, the Express unveiled an ITDC sponsored bonanza for Sonia Gandhi’s constituency—it had marked Rs 5.80 crore for Rae Bareli. The story was done by Ritu Sarin.
Extensive investigation by Ritu Sarin led to a startling revelation: Secure Telecom, a company that supplies the bulk of surveillance and counter-surveillance equipment to government agencies, including the Military Intelligence and the Intelligence Bureau, is being investigated for alleged forgery. The report was published on July 5.
On July 11, a report by Ritu Sarin showed the CBI and the Central Vigilance Commission asking for immunity under the 2005 Right to Information Act.
Ahead of petroleum minister Mani Shankar Aiyar’s visit to Islamabad for trilateral talks on the proposed Iran-India gas line, Amitav Ranjan reported on March 9 on how the United States had officially conveyed its apprehensions over New Delhi’s involvement in the $4.16 billion project.
On January 14, Ritu Sarin was the first to report on how the CBI was set to close the Taj case against Mayawati on advice from the attorney-general.
