The document is a letter from the President of the Indian Journalists Union discussing several topics: 1) The Union elected new office-bearers at its 8th Plenary Session and will continue defending journalists' rights and freedom of expression. 2) A court order restricting media reporting was criticized, and the Press Council of India will challenge it. All governments want to control media. 3) The Labor Minister promised to set up a committee to oversee implementing wage board recommendations for journalists and review laws to strengthen protections for working journalists.

1. Dear friends,
Let me first thank the IJU members for
electing the new team of office-bearers
unanimously at the just concluded 8th
Plenary Session at Bhubaneshwar. It gives
additional strength to fight to defend the
rights of the working journalists in the
country with renewed vigour. We shall be
ever more vigilant against attacks on the right
of freedom of expression but also physical
attacks on the practitioners of journalism in
the country.
Even before we were back home from
the Meghalaya High Court on 27 May,
restrained the print and electronic media
from reporting the statements of certain
organisations calling strikes, bandhs, hartals
etc. The IJU strongly felt that the High
Court order passed on the plea of the
Advocate General and Director General of
Police of Meghalaya was an unreasonable
restriction on freedom of the press. At the
request of the IJU, the Press Council of India
Chairman, Justice C K Prasad decided to file
an intervention petition in Meghalaya High
Court at the next hearing of the case on 10
June. All the governments want to control
the media by hook or by the crook. It is the
duty of trade union and professional
organisations of journalists to be vigilant.
It is gratifying to note that the Union
Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya
announced at our Plenary Session that he
would shortly appoint a central tripartite
committee to oversee the implementation of
the Majithia Wage Board recommendations
with representation to the IJU in it. He also
said the government would undertake review
of the provisions of the Working Journalists
Act with a view to strengthen it for the
benefit of working journalists. He also agreed
to bring amendments to the WJA to include
electronic media journalists under its purview
after discussing the issue with the stake
holders.
After the successful completion of the
8th Plenary Session, the leaders and
members of the IJU and its affiliated state
unions should now concentrate their
attention and efforts to be ever vigilant
sentinels of the freedom of the press and
welfare of the working journalists in the
country. We also have to strive for ethical
journalism which is as important as anything
else. For this we need broader unity not only
among the working journalists but also with
other sections of the working class in the
country. First let us unite the electronic
media journalists and technicians with the
journalists and non-journalist employees
of the newspaper industry.
S. N. SINHA
From the PPrreessiiddeenntt''ss ppeenn
Union Lobour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya
promised to set up a central tripartite
Committee at his ministry level to monitor the
implementation of recommendations of the
Majithia wage board for working journalists and
other newspaper employees in the country.
Addressing the 8th Plenary Session of the
Indian Journalists Union (IJU) on second day of
the two day session held
at Com D S Rabindra
Doss Nagar, Kalinga
Industrial Institute of
Technology (KIIT)
campus, Bhubaneswar
on 23-24 May, the Union Labour Minister who
attended the conference as Chief Guest,
promised to bring comprehensive changes in
the Working Journalists and Other Newspaper
Employees (Conditions of Service and Other
Miscellaneous Provisions) Act to enhance
punishments to the violators.
Referring to the demand of the Union for
the appointment of tripartite in the place of the
officials committee, he assured that a full
pledged tripartite committee would be
constituted with the representatives of
journalists unions, the proprietorsand officials
to monitor the implementation of the Majithia
Wage Board recommendations. He admitted
that implementation of recommendations by
the managements even after the Supreme
Court upheld their validity in February 2014 was
slow and halfhearted.
Dattatreya said the
government would
decide on bring the
journalists working in
electronic media under
the purview of the Working Journalists Act after
holding discussions with all the stake holders.
He admitted that the times had changed and
the working journalists Act should also be
brought in tune with the times.
Stressing the need for free media for
fulfilling the aspirations of the people of the
country, he said the media also changed and
investigative journalism took roots, which he
FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION ONLY HYDERABAD JUNE 2015
IJU 8th
Plenary
(Contd.on Page 2)
Wage Board Implementation
Dattatreya promises to set up
Central Tripartite Panel
Union Minister for Labour Bandaru Dattatreya, Chief Guest at the IJU Plenary
addressing the biennial conference.

2. IJU Newsletter JUNE 20152
said, he would welcome. He said the journalists
were standing up and discharging their duties
despite pressures from a variety of quarters.“Do
not spend your time on investigative journalism
all the time, spare some time for development
journalism,”he quipped.
He said the people of the country gave a
massive mandate to Prime Minister Narendra
Modi led BJP government and it was
determined to live up to the expectations of the
people. He sought the co-operation of the
media to take message of good things done by
the government to the
people.
The Odisha Minister
for Health and Infor-
mation and Public
Relations Atanu Sabya-
sachi Nayak described journalists as friends,
philosophers and guides of the people and
called upon them to lead the way for a
sustainable growth of the society by means of
their mighty pen, social commitment, skill,
expertise and interactive communication.
Inaugurating the Plenary Session on 23
May,he said the role of media in our society was
so important that it was described as fourth
estate or fourth pillar of our democracy.
Calling for positive journalism,the Minister
he asked journalists not to trivialise matters and
try to show some thing where nothing existed.
He urged upon the journalists to give
importance to issues of public importance.
Odisha Minister for Urban Development
and Housing Pushpendra Narayana Singh Deo,
KIIT Founder Achyuta Samanta, Saroj Kumar
Samal, MLA, Capt. Dibya Shankar Mishra, MLA.
Nilambhar Rath, ETV Odisha and several other
dignitaries graced the Plenary Session and gave
their messages. N
(Contd.from Page 1)
The Governor of Odisha
S C Jamir described the
independent and unbiased
media as the life blood of
the society and called for
free flow of news and views
with truth as the bedrock. Addressing the
Valedictory function of the 8th Plenary Session
of Indian Journalists Union (IJU) at Com
D S Rabindra Doss Nagar, Kalinga Industrial
Institute of Technology (KIIT) campus,
Bhubaneswar on 24 May,
he called on the media to
shun sensa-tionalism
and avoid telecasting
and publishing sensa-
tional imagery.
“Sensational journalism makes a mockery
of serious social problems. It needs toexercise
caution and steer away from provocative
journalism. Whether it is a pen or camera, they
are powerful devices focusing on the reality of
the event" the Governor said.
He said “Mahatma Gandhi, a journalist
himself, cautioned that ‘an uncontrolled pen
serves but destroy’. Our first Prime Minister
Jawaharlal Nehru warned ‘If
there is no responsibility
and no obligation attached
to it, freedom gradually
withers away. This is true of
the nation’s freedom and it
applies as much to the press as any other group,
organisation or individual.”
Saying that journalism was not just any
other profession, Dr. Jamir called for evolving a
well-defined and clearly articulated ethical
principles in our newsrooms. “Counting on
grand legacy and glorious tradition of Indian
journalism, I am sure that days of good
journalism are not over despite several
allurements.It is heartening to note that there is
a great interest among the youngsters in this
profession who are full of commitment and we
need to convert their passion to bring in
change,”he asserted.
The Governor lauded the efforts of the
Indian Journalists Union (IJU) to safeguarding
the freedom of the press, while fighting for the
safety of journalists and for better living and
working conditions for them. N
Shun sensationalism,Governor Jamir tells media
•• Daysforgoodjournalismstillthere
•• Nurtureyoungtalentamongscribes
•• LaudssentinelroleofIJU
A view of the IJU leaders and delegates who participated in the two day Plenary of the Union.
Dr. S.C.Jamir, Governor, Odisha addressing the valedictory function of the Plenary of IJU
IJU 8th
Plenary

3. IJU Newsletter JUNE 20153
Indian Journalists Union (IJU) President
S N Sinha called for a comprehensive law to
govern the living and working conditions of
journalists in multiple platforms of the media in
the country. Delivering his Presidential address
at the inaugural session of the 8th Plenary
Session of the Union held on 23-24 May at
Ravindra Doss Nagar in KIIM Campus,
Bhubaneswar,he said it became imperative that
the laws which covered only print media, have
to be made inclusive of the TV and electronic,
including social media.
Sinha said that in the past seven decades,
Indian news media had grown many fold into a
mighty force but the laws government the
working journalists cover only the print media
leaving others without any legal frame work.
“What we require, therefore, is a legal
framework that covers not only the Press but
the entire media. That would require, as a first
step,the constitution of a Media Commission to
consider the role and requirement of the entire
media and recommend changes required in the
legislation to extend the provisions of the
Working Journalists Act (WJA), including those
of the wage board machinery, to all media
persons,”the IJU President said.
Intolerance of media criticism
Referring to the increasing intolerance of
media criticism by the powers that be, he said
the very classes who defended the rights of the
fourth estate were scared of its freedom and
wanted to deprive it of its role in the democratic
polity.
He lauded the stand of the Press Council of
India Chairman, Justice C K Prasad who refused
to issue an advisory to the press to block news
regarding the telecast of the BBC documentary
on Nirbhay case, which the union government
banned as it felt that,‘it tarnished the image of
the country and the Indian society’ and added
that “the (PCI) chairman undoubtedly did us all
proud by refusing to issue such an advisory."
Insensitive coverage of Nepal tragedy
The IJU President lauded the brave people
of Nepal who suffered huge losses of life and
property butwere up again on their toes even in
the midst of aftershocks to rebuild their land
and life. He said it was natural in such
calamitous times for all of us to rally to the
assistance and support of our Nepalese
brethren and to contribute whatever we could
for their relief and rehabilitation.
He chided some Indian media persons
who brought a bad name to the Indian media
because of their insensitive reporting and
behavior during their coverage of the
earthquake. He said it was “mainly because of
the TRP-motivated pressure of some media
magnates, particularly TV bosses, some of the
less-experienced journalists pursued their
routine technique and failed to appreciate that
a human tragedy of such huge dimensions. He
said they failed to realise that it was a human
issue first and had to be handled sensitively.
“The media should certainly have behaved with
a lot more circumspection, sensitivity and
responsibility, in which case our neighbours
would have asked them not to“go back”but to
“come again!”,he added.
Wage Board recommendations implementation
Sinha expressed deep concern over the
tardy implementation of the wage board
recommendations even after the Supreme
Court upheld its validity and directed its
implementation in a time frame. He said the
recent direction of the apex court in a contempt
petition by employees Jagran, Eenadu and
some other Groups asking the state
governments to make a survey of the state of
implementation of the Majithia Wage Board
recommendations and report to it by the end of
July.
In this context he lauded the efforts of the
Tribune Employees Union,Chandigarh,in which
the local IJU leadership is quite active, who
successfully negotiated and signed an
agreement with their management to transfer
210 contract employees to wage board scales.
This was first such case involving the reversal of
the notorious process the employers initiated
to have a compliant Press.
MOUs with Sudan and Pakistan Journalists
The IJU President hailed the Memoranda of
Understanding (MoUs) the union signed with
the Sudan Journalists Union and Pakistan
Federal Union of Journalists on mutual co-
operation and exchange of information and
delegations. Referring to the appointment of
IJU leaders as Election Observers in the recently
concluded National and Presidential elections
in Sudan, he said it showed the prestige and
influence the IJU enjoyed world over. He said it
would be the endeavour of the Union to
expand relations with journalists Unions in
other countries at bilateral level while
strengthening our role in International
Federation of Journalists (IFJ) where our leader
Sabina Inderjit got elected for the fifth
consecutive term to the Executive.
Solidarity with struggles of working class
Sinha expressed concern over the
government’s attempts to dilute the labour
lawsin name of ‘ease of business’ by facilitating
‘relocation of workers’ an euphemism for large
scale retrenchments. He saluted the working
people of the country, who displayed
exemplary unity in defense of their rights when
all the Central trade unions, including the pro-
BJP Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS), had firmly
rejected the proposed “labour reforms” and
decided to take joint action in defense of their
rights. He said it was imperative that working
journalists trade union and professional
movement should strengthen their own unity
and increase their strength to fight for their
rights. N
Sinha calls for single law for the whole Media
The International Federation of
Journalists (IFJ) President Jim Boumelha,
greeting the delegates attending the 8th
Plenary Session of IJU, said the IFJ and all the
global family journalists were proud of the
achievements of the IJU and its determination
to confront many tough challenges over so
many years, and stood up for its members’
social and professional rights.
In a message to the Plenary, the IFJ
President lauded the powerful fighting spirit
of IJU that made it one of the most consistent
true voices of journalists in India. Regretting
his inability to attend the Plenary Session, he
appreciated the IJU
record on promoting
ethics and representing
journalists at every level.
“Your plenary is
taking place at momentous time for
journalists worldwide, and I hope you will
debate the current crisis that is engulfing
journalism today as employers are reacting
everywhere by cutting back costs and
creating precarious workplaces where the
standards of journalism are in a down spiral,
putting pressure on the attachment of
journalists to ethical principles,”he said. N
IFJ President lauds fighting spirit of IJU
S.N.Sinha, President, IJU delivering the presidential address at the IJU Plenary.
IJU 8th
Plenary

4. IJU Newsletter JUNE 20154
The Secretary General of IJU Amar
Devulapalli called upon the state unions to
increase their membership so that the Indian
Journalists Union could be further
strengthened to be the sentinel of freedom of
expression and a fighting machine for better
living and working conditions of journalists in
the country. Presenting his report on the
activities of the Union since the last Plenary to
the 8th Plenary Session of the Union held at
D S Rabindra Doss Nagar, KIIT Campus,
Bhubaneswar on 23-24 May,he said the Union
had its presence in every nook and corner of
the country and emerged as the most
representative organisation of the
practitioners of journalism in the country.
He said after the last plenary session,
seven state unions had come in to the fold of
the Union increasing its strength to about 30
thousand members. He lamented that the
membership of several state unions was
stagnant and the state leaders seemed to have
made no effort to increase their membership.
The growth in membership came from the
new unions that joined our fold after the
Hyderabad Plenary, while the membership of
all most all unions except Andhra Pradesh and
Telangana were either static or marginally
declined.
Electronic media journalists
Amar called upon the state unions to
concentrate on mobilizing the working
journalists in the electronic media in to our
fold. He told the state leaders to amend the
bye laws of their unions, if necessary to
accommodate the electronic media
journalists in the leadership structure at state
and district levels.
Muffossil journalists
Amar said no media house in the country
was paying proper wages to the muffossil
journalists in the country, leave alone
implementing wage board scales
recommended by the Majithia Wage Board. In
most cases in the language media, no wages
were paid. “The rural journalists were being
use by the media managements not only to
report but also manage circulation and
advertisements.
He said Paid News was another menace.
“As you are aware, our union is the first to
expose this scourge. We are doing our best by
moving the statutory authorities like the Press
Council of India and Election Commission.
Wage Board Struggle
He pointed out that even 14 months after a
division bench of Supreme Court headed by
Chief Justice Sathasivam upheld the validity of
the MajithiaWage Board recommendations and
directed the managements and the Indian
Newspapers Society (INS) to implement the
new pay scales within three months and pay
arrears in four instalments within one year from
the date of judgement, very few managements
implemented the same.
He said some employees of the Jagran
group and Eenadu group filed a contempt
petition in the Supreme for non-
implementation of the wage board
recommendations. During the hearing on 29
April, a division bench of the Supreme Court
directed all the state governments to conduct a
survey of all newspaper offices in their
respective states by appointing an officer to
know the state of implementation of the wage
board scales.
Amar alleged that some of the
managements were resorting to contract
employment of journalists to beat the
implementation of the wage board scales.
Even newspapers like the Hindu has been
resorting to such tactics. The state
governments were not pursuing it seriously.
He asked the state unions to chalk out an
action program to force the managements to
honour the apex court ruling.
The Secretary General said the union was
successfully publishing Newsletter from
Hyderabad for the last seven months as
decided by the National Executive Committee.
“We have applied for the registration of a
regular monthly magazine and the Registrar of
Newspapers in India (RNI) cleared the title
Scribes News.We are making arrangements for
its publication in next two or three months,”
he said.
Amar thanked Dr. Achyutananda
Samanta, the pioneering educationist and
founder of the Kalinga Industrial Institute of
Technology (KIIT) for giving us the auditorium
to hold our conference and hostel rooms to
accommodate journalist delegates from
different states of the country.
He said the Odisha Journalists Union (OJU)
and its President Prabhat Dash deserved
appreciation for making excellent arrangements
for the conference and accommodation for the
delegates. “OJU comrades have over-stretched
themselves to make our stay here comfortable
and our discussions at the Plenary fruitful,” he
added. N
Amar calls for widening membership base of Union
D.Amar, Secretary General, IJU addressing the two day IJU Plenary.
GUESTS AT PLENARY AND LEADERS OF IJU ADDRESSING THE DELEGATES
Atanu Sabyasachi Nayak,
Minister for I & PR
Pushpendra Narayana Singh Deo,
Minister for Urban Development
K.Amarnath
Member PCI
Sabina Inderjit
Vice President, IJU
Prabhat Kumar Dash
President, OJU
Nilambhar Rath
ETV Odisha
IJU 8th
Plenary

5. IJU Newsletter JUNE 20155
unions to vigorously follow up with their
respective state government to appoint
Inspectors under the WJA and instruct them to
physically inspect all the newspaper
establishments on the state of implementation
of the wage board recommendations and send
a report to the apex court within the stipulated
time.
Appointment of tripartite committees
In a resolution the IJU urged on all the
State Governments in the country to
immediately appoint a tripartite committee
with representation to the representative
organisations of working journalists to oversee
the implementation of the recommendations
of the Majithia Wage Board, wherever such
committees were not in existence.
The IJU demands that a tripartite
committee should be appointed by the Union
Ministry of Labour with representation to the
all India level working journalists
representative organisations in place of the
present officials committee to monitor the
implementation of wage board
recommendations and to take immediate
corrective action.
Resolution on Paid News
In a resolution on the menace of ’paid
news’ the IJU called upon the working
journalists, their organisations, democratic
forces and civil society in country to wage a
relentless struggle to eradicate the scourge of
‘Paid News’ which was eating in to the vitals of
ethical journalism and distorting the
democratic election process.
”We are proud of the fact that the practice
of ‘Paid News’ was first exposed by IJU and its
affiliate Andhra Pradesh Union of Working
Journalists (APUWJ) way back in 2009 General
Elections. Even, the Press Council of India (PCI)
The 8th Plenary Session of the Indian
Journalists Union (IJU) meeting at
D S Rabindra Doss Nagar, Kalinga Industrial
Institute of Technology (KIIT) Campus,
Bhubaneswar on 23-24 May strongly
demanded that the Government of India
should initiate steps to appoint another wage
boards for working journalists and other
newspaper employees in the country
immediately.
The IJU resolution pointed out that last
wage boards were appointed almost ten years
ago and the pay scales recommended by it
have become obsolete in face of abnormal rise
in the cost of living. It said the Working
Journalists Act (WJA) should be immediately
amended to bring the electronic media
journalists and other employees under its
purview and the terms of reference of the wage
boards should include the working journalists
and other employees of the electronic and web
media.
The resolution also urged upon the union
government to strengthen the penal
provisions in the WJA to as a deterrent to the
media managements to who blatantly violate
the judgements of the Supreme Court and
refuse to implement the recommendations of
the wage boards.
IJU said even our in neighbouring
Pakistan,the Pakistan Federal Union ofWorking
Journalists was demanding the appointment of
ninth wage board while in India Majithia wage
board was the sixth wage board.
Union called upon the working journalists
in forms of the media including electronic and
web and other media workers to unitedly raise
their voice for the appointment of the new
wage board and be ready to launch a powerful
movement including direct action, to force the
government to heed our demand.
SC Verdicts in Wage Board cases Welcomed
In a resolution, the IJU welcomed the
recent direction of the Supreme Court to all the
state governments to appoint Inspectors under
the provisions of the Working Journalists Act
(WJA) to survey all the newspaper
establishments in their respective states on the
implementation of the the Majithia wage
board recommendations. The apex in a
direction issued on 29 April in contempt
petition filed by employees of the Jagaran
group,Eenadu group and some others,told the
state governments to submit a report to it
within three months.
It may be recalled in a land mark judgment
of the Supreme Court upholding the validity of
the Majithia Wage Board recommendations
and directed the management to implement
recommendations within three months and
pay arrears in four instalments spread over one
year.
The Plenary called upon all the state
and Parliamentary Standing Committee on
Ministry of Information Technology
acknowledges the efforts of the IJU and
APUWJ.”The resolution said.
It noted the work done in this direction by
IJU and affiliated unions met with partial
success as the managements were finding new
ways and means to beat the detection of the
practice.The Plenary called upon the working
journalists in the country to continue the fight
in all forums until we are able to stop this
unethical practice.
Strengthen WJA,demands IJU
The Plenary. In a resolution hailed the
stellar role played by the Working Journalists
Act (WJA) over the past 60 years in
safeguarding the freedom of the Press and
ensuring that the media played its legitimate
role as the ever-vigilant watchdog of the
people to strengthen the country’s democratic
institutions.
It recalled that our predecessors
undoubtedly helped put in place an effective
statute to ensure that the foot soldiers of the
fourth estate could act freely and without
compromising their conscience.“It has played a
vital role in the progressive development of a
strong, vigilant and vibrant Indian journalism.
No wonder the employers have been trying all
along to scuttle its provisions by hook or crook
and employ fresh stratagems, like the contract
system, to deprive the working journalists of a
statutorily guaranteed job security and wages
fixed by the wage board machinery and to
usurp the freedom of the Press to promote
their vested interests,”the resolution said.
Noting that the Supreme Court upheld the
constitutional validity of the WJA,the IJU called
upon the Government bring in amendments to
the Working Journalists Act to abolish the
contract employment of working journalists
and to include the journalists and employees of
the electronic media under its purview. It also
called for strengthening its provisions relating
to job security, provide for a permanent
statutory wage revision machinery and put in
IJU demands New Wage Board
(Contd.on Page 6)
IJU 8th
Plenary
K.Sreenivas Reddy, IJU senior leader proposing a resolution in the second day session of the IJU Plenary

6. IJU Newsletter JUNE 20156
place institutional arrangements to ensure
implementation of statutorily-fixed wages and
codified working and service conditions. This
plenary session of the IJU called upon the
Government to initiate the process of
strengthening the WJA by deciding on the
changes required in the Act through direct
negotiations with the IJU.
EPF decision criticized
In a resolution, the Plenaru criticized the
decision of the Employees Provident Fund
Organisation (EPFO) to stop the payment of
interest on the accounts that remain
“inoperative”for more than three years because
of the non-receipt of their contributions that
are required to be sent by the employers. The
EPFO claims that this has been done to
discourage the employees from keeping their
accounts inoperative and to encourage them
to withdraw their“inoperative”accounts,but in
effect, it amounts to penalizing the employees
for a crime that they have not committed.
The IJU called upon the EPFO to review its
decision urgently and withdraw the orders for
withholding the payment of interest on such
accounts.
IJU supports working class struggles
This plenary of IJU wholeheartedly
supported the Central Trade Unions in their
common struggle of the country’s working
class against the Government’s ill-advised
moves to change the national labour laws
against the interests of the workers.
“While declaring its firm support to this
struggle and the unity of the country’s working
classes,the IJU assures the CentralTrade Unions
that it shall always support their struggles to
protect the interests of the working people,”
the resolution said.
Calls for unity of all sections of working people
The IJU plenary called broadest possible
unity of all sections of working class including
the employees to face the challenges posed by
the employers to their lives and welfare.
“Notwithstanding the pious intentions
expressed by the political class, the employers
are doing their utmost to deprive the working
people of all the rights and privileges they have
won so far. The situation calls for grandest
possible unity of the entire working class, the
IJU therefore, calls upon the entire journalist
community to appreciate the need of the hour
and get together in support of their cause,”the
resolution said
16 resolutions adopted
The Plenary passed in all 16 resolutions
including resolution on the muffossil
journalists,another on safety of journalists.
OJU hospitality and arrangements lauded
The Odisha Journalists Union and its
President Prabhat Dash received a lot praise for
making the stay of the delegates attending the
8th Plenary of the IJU comfortable and
deliberations and discussions at the session
fruitful.
All the speakers from different states
joined the President and Secretary-General to
thank the OJU and its leaders and cadre for
striving to make the plenary a grand success.
Demand for Media Commission
The IJU Plenary reiterated its demand for
constitution of a Media Commission to study
the state affairs in the Media in the country.In a
resolution, it noted that there was an explosive
growth of media, following the epoch making
and revolutionary changes in communications
leading to proliferation of electronic media in
the last two decades, with more than eight
hundred 24 hour news channels in the airwaves
in the country.
The IJu said. on the other hand, the
governments were bringing draconian laws
comments like the 66 A of the Information
Technology Act to reign in unpalatable
comments in the social and internet media. (It
was struck down by the Supreme Court).
IJU felt that it was right time to have relook
at the whole gamut of media including its
ownership, the role of working journalists in
print, electronic and internet media. It called
the Government of India to immediately
appoint a Media Commission with terms of
reference covering the media of all types and
platforms and its growth and development. It
also demanded that representation should be
given to representative organisations of the
working journalists in the commission. N
CelebrationofSilverJubileeofIJU
The plenary called upon all the affiliated
State unions to celebrate in a befitting
manner the completion of 25 years of
founding of the Indian Journalists Union. It
may be recalled the first and founding
conference of the Union was held in Ranchi,
then in Bihar and now the capital of
Jharkhand in December 1989.
The plenary in a resolution said the IJU
had emerged as the most representative
organisation of the working journalists in the
country and grew from strength to strength
in the last 25 years. It also emerged as the
sentinel of the freedom of expression in the
country and was recongised as such by the
institutions of the press in the country and
abroad. N
(Contd.from Page 5)
The Secretary-General of Pakistan
Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) greeted
the 8th Plenary Session of the Indian
Journalists Union held at Bhubaneswar on
23-24 May.
In a message to the Plenary, first time in
the history of IJU, the Secretary-General of
PFUJ, Amin Yousuf called for closer relations
between the two national unions of
neighboring countries to nurture journalists
to journalists relations for mutual benefit in
wake of the recently signed MoU between
the unions.
He said the PFUJ is constantly working
since its inception in 1950, for a better
working environment for Pakistani
journalists and courageously faced major
issues confronting the journalists
community, like downsizing the wages,
threats to freedom of expression, deadly
attacks on media men and media houses.He
said the Union also launched impunity
campaign and on gender oriented matters.
Amin Yousuf said the Union launched
several welfare schemes including free
education to the children of journalists in
several educational institutions across
several cities. It is working for establishment
of Press Council of Pakistan,he added.
Wishing the Plenary Session a grand
success, he hoped that it would discuss
issues confronting the journalists and their
profession and come out with solutions. He
hoped that there would be exchange of
delegations between the two unions soon
for mutual benefit. N
Pakistani Union greets
the Plenary Session
IJU leaders felicitating Mr. Achyuta Samanta , Founder of Kalinga Industrial Institute of
Technology (KIIT) who provided the premises of the institute to host the Plenary.
IJU 8th
Plenary
IJU demands New Wage Board

7. IJU Newsletter JUNE 20157
Applying a break to the machinations of the
newspaper barons including Sanjay Gupta
of Jagran Group and Ramoji Rao of Eenadu,the
Supreme Court on 29 April directed all the state
governments to appoint inspectors under the
Working Journalists Act (WJA) to survey
whether newspapers in their respective states
were implementing the recommendations of
the Majithia Wage board.
The Court was hearing W.P. (C) No.
246/2011, Avishek Raja & Others. Petitioner(s)
Versus
Sanjay Gupta, alleged Contemnor/
Respondent(s), Contempt Petition (C) No.
285/2015 in W.P.(C) No. 246/201, K Anju Kumar
and others vs Ramoji Rao and Another and a
batch of other petitions.
The Supreme Court bench consisting of
Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice N V Ramana,
hearing a batch of Contempt of Court
petitions, angrily told the newspaper
managements that they would not be able to
delay implementation of the wage board
recommendations by retaining highly paid
senior counsels. After hearing the counsel for
petitioners, the court passed the following
order:
“While keeping these contempt petitions
pending we issue the following directions:
All the State Governments acting through
their respective Chief Secretaries shall, within
four weeks from today, appoint Inspectors
under Section 17(b) of the Working Journalists
and Other Newspaper Employees (Conditions
of Service) and Miscellaneous Provisions 7 Act,
1955 to determine as to whether the dues and
entitlements of all categories of Newspaper
Employees including Journalists under the
Majithia Wage Board award has been
implemented in accordance with the terms
thereof.The inspectors appointed by the State
Government will naturally exercise their
powers as provided under the Act and shall
submit their report to this Court through the
Labour Commissioners of each State indicating
the precise findings on the issue indicated
above. This will be done within a period of
three months from the date of appointment
under Section 17(b) of the Act.The cases will be
listed again after receipt of the report as above
stated. All contentions with regard to
maintainability of the contempt petitions are
kept open.”
The IJU President S N Sinha and Secretary-
General Amar Devulapalli requested all the
affiliated State Unions, to urge upon their
respective state governments to appoint
Inspectors immediately and report to the apex
court before the end of July. N
Implementation of Majithia wage board recommendations
SC orders states to appoint Inspectors
• Calls for report by end of July
• IJU urges State Govts. to comply
with the order
The Meghalaya High Court on 27
May, restrained the print and
electronic media from reporting
the statements of Hynniewtrep
National Liberation Council
(HNLC), a banned outfit in the
state, which called for a Bandh in
the state.
Taking an office note on the
disruption of court work due to
the bandh,moved by the Registrar
General of the Court as a writ petition, a bench
consisting of Chief Justice Uma Nath Singh,
Justice Nandakumar Singh and Justice S R
Sendirected that the “statements of HNLC or
any organization which may disturb the even
tempo of day-to-day public life and cause
violation of Fundamental rights of citizens in
particular under Article 19 and 21 of the
Constitution of India relating to strike, Bandh,
Hartal, Road Blockade and holding of Rallies
with unlawful design shall not be issued by any
of the print and electronic media.
The order said that in case of violation of
the court direction, it might not only proceed
under the Contempt of Courts Act,but‘it is also
directed State Government to register criminal
cases under appropriate provisions of the law’
against the media.
It may be noted that the court direction
came after the Advocate General and Director-
General of Police, Meghalaya pleaded that the
statements issued by the outfit HNLC banned
by the Tribunal as unlawful assembly were
given undue publicity and coverage, both in
print and electronic media which, they alleged
created fear in the mind of common citizens.
The Director General of Police requested
the court to restrain the media from publishing
any such statements of HNLC or any other
organization which might have the effect of
disturbing the even tempo of public life in the
State.
The Court posted the case for further
hearing on 10 June. N
Chief Justice Uma
Nath Singh
Justice Nandakumar
Singh
Justice S R Sen
MeghalayaHCrestrainsmediareportageonBandh
Justice Ranjan
Gogoi
Justice
N V Ramana
Sanjay Gupta of
Jagran Group
ChRamoji Rao of
Eenadu Group
PCI decides to intervene
The Press Council of India (PCI) Chairman
Justice C K Prasad decided to file an
intervention petition in the case in which the
Meghalaya High Court passed restraint order
on reporting the bandh calls given by some
organisations when it would come up hearing
on 10 June,at the request of Indian Journalists
Union (IJU). This was conveyed to the IJU
leaders by Justice Prasad telephonically.
Earlier, the Indian journalists Union (IJU)
expressed deep concern over the order of the
Meghalaya High Court on 27 May restraining
the media, both print and electronic, from
publishing/ broadcasting the statements of
some organisations relating to strike, bandh
and hartal.
In a letter to the Chairman Press Council
of India (PCI) Justice C K Prasad on 3 June, the
Union President S N Sinha, Secretary-General
Amar Devulapalli and PCI member
K Amarnath said that the order of the
Meghalaya High Court placed unreasonable
restrictions on the editorial discretion of the
working journalists and right of freedom of
expression exercised by the media on behalf
of the common people. N

8. IJU Newsletter JUNE 20158
The Central Returning Officer for IJU elections B S Ramakrishna conducted the elections for the
posts of 3 Vice-Presidents, 6 posts of Secretaries, one post of Treasurer and 15 members of the
National Executive Committee on 24 May in the Plenary premises at Rabindra Doss Nagar, KIIT
Campus,Bhubaneswar.
As there were equal number of nominations for the 3 posts of Vice-Presidents, 6 posts of
Secretaries,one post ofTreasurer and 14 nominations for 15 posts of NEC members he declared the
following elected unanimously and made an announcement in the Plenary Sesion.
Printed and Published by : Devulapalli Amar,Secretary-General,IJU on behalf of Indian Journalists Union. Secretary-General Office :5-9-60/B, Deshoddharaka Bhavan,Basheerbagh,
Hyderabad - 500 001, Telangana State. Telefax :040-23232660. Printed at : Sai Likhita Printers, Khairatabad,Hyderabad - 500 004.Ph:040-6554 5979.
Balwinder Singh Jammu
(Punjab)
Secretary
Amar Mohan Prasad
(Bihar)
Secretary
Prabhat Kumar Dash
(Odisha)
Secretary
Dr. D. Sivasankaran
(Tamilnadu)
Jayashree Bhattacharya
(West Bengal)
Sivendra Narayana Singh
(Bihar)
B C Singhal
(Uttarakhand)
D Atchuta Rao
(Andhra Pradesh)
Geetartha Pathak
(Asom)
Vice President
Y Narender Reddy
(Telangana)
Secretary
Ambati Anjaneyulu
(Andhra Pradesh)
Vice President
Prem Nath Bhargava
(Delhi)
Treasurer
Sujit Dey
(Tripura)
Madhukar
(Jharkhand)
Sabina Inderjit
(Delhi)
Vice President
V B Rajan
(Kerala)
Secretary
RatanLuwangaha
(Manipur)
Secretary
S.N. Sinha
President
Amar Devulapalli
Secretary General
IJUnewoffice-bearerselectedunanimously
National Executive Committee Members
M A Majid
(Telangana)
S P Gaur
(Uttar Pradesh)
R Rajendra
(Andhra Pradesh)
David Laitphlang
(Meghalaya)
Prabhat Pathak
(Asom)
P Bhaskar Reddy
(Karnataka)
K Satyanarayana
(Telangana)