Namrata Biji Ahuja, Senior Special Correspondent of THE WEEK, was given the prestigious Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Awards for her exclusive story on Naga underground camps in the northeast.
Her cover story "Inside Secret Naga State" was the first ever first-hand account of a reporter from a Naga underground camp. It talked about the parallel and secret Naga state functioning with all ministries inside Nagaland, interviews and first personal accounts of Naga "ministers" and officials.
Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh gave away the awards to 29 winners across print, broadcast and digital platforms, at a glittering function in the national capital on Friday.
At the event that celebrated good journalism, the minister said the importance of the conventional media will never be undermined as long as they are credible. He said the power of the Press was such that the courts at times took suo motto notice of issues raised in the news columns.
"But to err is human. To retract when something wrong has been published is an act of courage," he said.
Talking at length on the role of media, Singh urged the media to play the role of a bridge between people and government. "I don't believe that government and media can't be friends. Even if we can't be friends, we don't have to be foes," the minister elaborated.
The media, in his view, should hold a mirror to the government, but the mirror should not be coloured. Singh said he was particularly appalled at the description that "naxalites are Gandhians with guns". "I can't imagine Gandhi with guns," he remarked. "We can have different views, but the views shouldn't be mixed up with news".
The minister also said that journalism was a matter of trust with people and that trust should not be broken.
He cautioned the media against fake news.