Aamra ekhon-o boli ni kon kagoj porte hobe, kintu agami dine kintu setao bole debo. (Till now, we haven’t told which newspapers must be read, but in the future, we will do that as well.) – West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, speaking on March 29 in defense of her government’s decision to bar all but 13 newspapers from more than 2,400 government-approved libraries across the state. “Kunal Ghosh, associate editor...

-The Hoot The West Bengal Chief Minister has made it clear that any public voice of dissent would be curbed by whatever means required. “If required, I will tell the people which newspapers to read in future”: this gem of an announcement was made by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in an interview given to selected news channels recently. Giving interviews to a chosen few, especially those who would not dare...

-PTI English dailies or high circulation Bengali ones will no longer be available in state-sponsored and aided libraries in West Bengal, according to an official circular. The circular specified eight newspapers which it said would significantly contribute to the development and spread of free thinking among the library users. Listing the eight newspapers published in Bengali Hindi and Urdu, the Department of Mass Education, Extension and Library Services, in a circular dated March...

A directive by the West Bengal Government to State libraries and those sponsored by it to subscribe only to newspapers specified by it has raised the hackles of the Left parties as well as certain civic rights activists. A circular issued by a Special Secretary of the Government directs the libraries to purchase only eight newspapers as specified by it. It provides the names of five Bengali newspapers, two Urdu and...

-Express News Service Protests erupted across the state, but the Trinamool Congress government stood firm on its circular on the newspapers that readers of all government libraries should read.   “There is no question of withdrawing the circular. Every government has its own policy and the circular was prepared in accordance with government rules and policies. I knew about it. The chief minister also knew it before it was issued,’’ Abdul Karim Choudhury,...