Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav refuses to take questions from NDTV at a press conference in Lucknow
Akhilesh Yadav, the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, nettled by a series of NDTV reports on the grim conditions in Muzaffarnagar's relief camps, today said at a press conference in Lucknow that he would not take any questions from me.
"I won't take your questions," the 40-year-old said. When I tried to ask him another question, he said, "You please return to the rear of the room. You appear best when you are there."
In September, nearly 60 people were killed in Hindu-Muslim violence in Muzaffarnagar in the worst riots in Mr Yadav's state in over a decade. 40,000 people were displaced from their homes.
NDTV's coverage has focused on the conditions of the refugee camps which mushroomed to accommodate the homeless. When NGOs reported on children falling sick from the extreme cold, we launched a blanket donation drive. Viewers have sent over 6,000 blankets for Muzaffarnagar's relief camps.
Mr Yadav seemed especially irked by a report over the weekend in which NDTV highlighted the fact that while those still living in camps are complaining of being forcibly evicted by government officials, ministers were present in expensive celebrations at an annual festival in Saifai, the chief minister's village.
(Read)NDTV's coverage of Muzaffarnagar has included stories that looked at how politicians from different parties appear to have done their part in fanning the communal violence in September by delivering provocative speeches.