The News Minute | December 15, 2014 | 10.25 am IST
The Times of India has had it again. The Union Minister for Human Resource Development Smriti Irani is angry over the daily for what the minister called “deliberate mischief.”
The first page of the daily on Monday had a report headlined “Mark ‘good governance day’ on X’mas, govt tells schools.” The report said that the government wanted CBSE schools to be remained open on Christmas.
“If the Union government has its way, CBSE schools may have to remain open on this Christmas,” began the report. It said that the government was planning to celebrate the birth anniversaries of former PM Atal B. Vajpayee and leader of Hindu Maha Sabha Pandit Madan Mohan Malviya on December 25 as Good Governance Day by conducting “various activities, like an essay competition so that students’ participation increases.”
The Union HRD Minister Smriti Irani has reacted strongly to the report. She tweeted that this was a “deliberate mischief” by the news reporter of the daily because the essay competition is to be online and the schools would remain closed.
Dear @timesofindia deliberate mischief by ur reporter on the front page today. All schools closed for XMas, essay competition only online.
— Smriti Z Irani (@smritiirani) December 15, 2014Dear @timesofindia I wish this reporter had the decency to at least check with people frm TOI who cover d HRD beat.... (1/3)
— Smriti Z Irani (@smritiirani) December 15, 2014... Or for that matter verify d same with Secretary School Education, unless the idea was to deliberately misreport. (2/3)
— Smriti Z Irani (@smritiirani) December 15, 2014.. @timesofindia if truth is a virtue u cherish can I c a retraction tomorrow on the front page in bold (3/3)
— Smriti Z Irani (@smritiirani) December 15, 2014Dear @timesofindia even the essay competition online is VOLUNTARY.
— Smriti Z Irani (@smritiirani) December 15, 2014Read why Times of India has had a bad year.