Journalism of Courage

A son and a granddaughter, Chander and Jyotsna Mohan, chronicle the history of Pratap: A Defiant Newspaper. But it turns out to be much more than that—it juxtaposes the bravery and stature of freedom fighters in pre-Independence India with the current rulers’ preening and pretensions

- Harish Khare

IF anyone is confused about the meaning and content of ‘patriotism’ or ‘nationalism’ or ‘deshbhakti,’ then Pratap: A Defiant Newspaper becomes a required reading. It is a history of an Urdu newspaper and its unbowed defence of freedom of speech; it is a biography of the newspaper’s founder’s son, Virendra, and his effortless induction into the freedom struggle; it is a glimpse into the working habits and idiosyncrasies of those intrepid revolutionaries like Bhagat Singh and Chandrashekhar Azad who took up arms against the colonial power; it is a chronicle of militancy and extremism in Punjab; and, above all, it is an invitation—and, a much-needed invitation at that—to reflect on the moral shabbiness that has settled over all aspects of national life.

Before 1947, Lahore was the intellectual capital of undivided India. It was home to eminent colleges, headquarters to respected newspapers, and it was only natural that Pratap should have begun its journey from this vibrant city—a journey that ended in Jalandhar after the Partition. From the very beginning, Pratap thought of itself as a newspaper with a spine, always willing to cock a snook at the colonial authority and its native successors.

Pratap was a nationalist newspaper and it was normal for its intransigent editor, Mahashay Krishan, to earn the wrath of the British Government in Punjab. At one time, Pratap chose to shut its shop for 45 days, rather than submit to pre-censorship. And, it came as no surprise that Pratap was one of the few publications that did not bow to Indira Gandhi’s Emergency.

In an editorial, dated August 11, 1957, Krishan spelt out the role of a journalist: