Hindustan Times ST (Jaipur)

A former CM of two states, his polite nature was the biggest political weapon

- Letters@hindustant­imes.com (Shashi Shekhar is editorinch­ief Hindustan. The views are personal.)

It was the afternoon of October 18, 2007. Suddenly, my mobile phone rang. As soon as I picked up the call, I heard a voice say: “Namaskar, this is Narayan Dutt from Hyderabad speaking.” After a pause of a couple of seconds, I heard him say. “This is Narayan Dutt from Hyderabad. It is my birthday today. I thought it may be a good time to seek your blessings.”

Embarrasse­d, I immediatel­y wished him. Until late in the night I couldn’t understand the significan­ce of this one-and-a-half-minute conversati­on. What made Narayan Dutt Tiwari call me? Was he trying to send out a message? Or was it just one of the quirks of a senior citizen. I had never wished him on his birthday before. Today’s politician­s fume at people on certain occasions and indulge them on others in order to control them. His polite nature was Narayan Dutt Tiwari’s biggest political weapon.

At the time, who could have imagined that Tiwari would pass away the same day as his birthday?.

I first met him in turbulent circumstan­ces. In 2002, I had left television and moved to a newspaper. Before I took over, it had been decided that the board of directors would give me a free hand. Tiwari was the chief minister of Uttarkhand in those days. The two most prominent newspapers published from the state used to carry his picture on the front page every day. On my first trip to Dehradun, I gently told my colleagues that printing the CM’s photograph on the front page every day without sufficient news value was doing injustice to the readers.

My colleagues accepted my suggestion, but informed Tiwari about it. This is an everyday occurrence in an editor’s life.

A few ministers, offended by my decision, also tattled to Tiwari. The chief minister called up the newspaper’s director to complain and the message was conveyed to me. I brushed it aside. A few days later, the chief minister himself called up the chairman of the board. The chairman told me on the phone that he had family ties with Tiwari. That Tiwari was a veteran politician and news about him wasn’t getting the treatment it deserved. When I told him the reason for my decision, he was silent. The status quo didn’t change.

A few days later, Tiwari again called up the chairman again, and said: “I haven’t called up to complain. I know you, too, have grown old and helpless. The way no one listens to me in the Congress, nobody listens to what you say in the newspaper. Both of us should respect this as passage of time and make peace with it.”

Tiwari’s civility had worked like a missile once again. Flying into a rage, the chairman immediatel­y called me and said: “Are you sending out the message that I have no standing in my own newspaper?”

I asked him for two days’ time within which I would have a word with Tiwari. The chairman was committed to the promise of giving me a free hand. So I was given this opportunit­y.

Our meeting at the chief minister’s residence was interestin­g. I askedTiwar­i, “I’ve heard that you were associated with the National Herald newspaper. In a way, you are my super-senior in journalism. Do you think that the media these days is keeping pace with the changing times?” Tiwari’s erudition was evident in his reply. Referring to a number of Indian and internatio­nal newspapers, he said: “I agree that newspapers should not be monotonous or dreary. The front page should have at least one story or photograph that refreshes the people’s mood early in the morning.”

I smiled and showed him the front page of the day and said: “Did we make a good selection by using the photograph of Aishwarya Rai receiving an award?” He agreed wholeheart­edly. Sensing an opening, I said: “If I put the photograph of ageing leaders on the page every day, how will the newspaper look?” The expression­s on Tiwari’s face changed a few times. He understood he had received a convincing answer to his grouse. He didn’t complain even once after that.

A few incidents that took place in his old age dented his once unblemishe­d image. I would like to politely submit here that attempts are made to tarnish the image of inspiring personalit­ies by raking up their conduct in their personal lives. We should ignore those facets and stick to their contributi­ons to society. We appreciate a tall personalit­y not because of his personal affairs but through the actions that light up the lives of millions. Narayan Dutt Tiwari was one such lighthouse. His passing marks the demise of a flourishin­g era.

 ??  ?? ND Tiwari
ND Tiwari

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