Urdu Journalists Allege Exclusion From Delhi CM’s Diwali Media Interaction

Urdu-speaking journalists in the national capital have accused the Delhi government of discriminatory exclusion from a high-profile Diwali interaction hosted by Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on October 13, reigniting debates over linguistic and communal biases in media access and government outreach. The event, dubbed "Diwali Mangal Milan", was organised by the Directorate of Information and Publicity (DIP) as a platform for "amicable dialogue" between Gupta, her cabinet ministers, and select media representatives from print and electronic outlets. Invitations, distributed via WhatsApp by DIP Director Sushil Singh, reached reporters from mainstream Hindi and English publications but conspicuously bypassed those from Urdu media houses, including outlets that routinely cover BJP activities and government policies.

Sadiq Sherwani, editor of the Delhi-based Urdu daily Hamara Samaj, highlighted the snub in a report, noting that no Urdu journalist attended despite their established credentials. "While Urdu is not solely the language of Muslims, the BJP aims to project the notion that it is the language of Muslims," Sherwani told The Wire, contrasting the incident with the first BJP-led Delhi government in 1993, which he said treated Urdu media equitably. He dismissed claims of oversight, arguing that an error would have allowed at least one representative to participate.

The controversy underscores longstanding challenges for Urdu journalism in India, a lingua franca historically patronised across Hindu, Muslim, and Sikh communities but increasingly stigmatised post-Partition. Umar Ashraf, editor of Heritage Times and a researcher on Urdu traditions, explained to Al Jazeera that this perception has eroded circulation and viability: "The first Urdu newspaper was published by a Hindu. Sikhs, Hindus, and Muslims were all part of it. But after the 1940s, Urdu started being seen only as a Muslim language. That perception hurts it deeply."

Industry data from 2018-2022 reveals a 25% plunge in Urdu newspaper readership amid overall print growth, exacerbated by scant commercial ads and government patronage. Abdul Khaliq Ehsani, editor of Patna's Pindaar, lamented, "Only those newspapers which have government advertisements can flourish; otherwise, there is no scope." Affected journalists plan to escalate the matter to the Delhi government's Public Relations and Development Authority, demanding formal inclusion in future engagements.

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Political fallout has been swift, with Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader and former Delhi minister Imran Hussain condemning the episode as "stepmotherly treatment" and emblematic of BJP's "communal politics". The AAP, rooted in the 2025 Delhi polls that installed Gupta's BJP administration, has leveraged the issue to rally minority voters ahead of municipal elections. BJP spokespersons have yet to respond, but the party has historically defended such events as logistical necessities rather than exclusions. This incident parallels broader critiques of media polarisation under the Modi era, where Urdu outlets—numbering over 400 nationwide per Registrar of Newspapers data—face funding squeezes, with government ad spends favouring aligned Hindi dailies.

As Diwali celebrations wane, the row highlights fault lines in India's multilingual press ecosystem, where Urdu's literary legacy—from Mirza Ghalib to contemporary satire—clashes with market realities. Advocacy groups like the Urdu Markaz are calling for policy reforms, including equitable ad allocations under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting's 2024 guidelines. For Delhi's 500,000 Urdu speakers, the event's omission feels like a cultural sidelining, prompting vows of resilience amid calls for a more inclusive fourth estate.

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