Every 26th January, we celebrate Republic Day. Flags are raised, speeches are given, and we talk about the Constitution, freedom, and democracy. We feel proud of the values our country is built on. But there is one question we rarely ask: how safe is the truth in India today?
Journalists are often referred to as the fourth pillar of democracy. Their job is simple: show reality, ask questions, and tell people what is really happening. But today, doing this work can be risky. Many journalists know that some stories come with consequences. Some choose comfort over truth, some follow scripted lines, and some slowly stop asking questions.
The real danger is faced by those who still report honestly, those who question power and speak uncomfortable truths.
Are they safe, or are they being pushed into silence?
When speaking the truth brings fear, pressure, or threats, certain stories are avoided. Important questions remain unanswered. And when this happens, democracy does not end in one day; it weakens slowly, quietly, often without people realising what is being lost. When lies are repeated again and again, and no one challenges them, democracy remains only in books, not in real life.
Journalism Was Never Meant to Be Comfortable
Journalism was never meant to be easy or safe. It was never meant to make powerful people comfortable. Its role has always been to ask uncomfortable questions, expose wrongdoing, and go where others prefer silence. That is why journalism matters in a democracy.
But today, telling the truth has started to feel risky.
For many journalists, especially in small towns and villages, every story now comes with fear. Before reporting, they stop and think:
- Should I take this name?
- Will this create problems?
- Is this story worth the danger?
These are not questions a journalist should have to ask in a free democracy. But today, they are becoming normal. And when fear begins to guide journalism, truth slowly starts disappearing.
A Global Reality: Silence Through Fear
This is not only India’s problem. Across the world, journalists have been attacked, jailed, and killed simply for doing their work.
Since the 1990s, more than 1,400 journalists have been killed for trying to expose the truth. In most of these cases, the attackers were never punished. The cases were closed, delayed, or quietly forgotten, leaving behind one clear message.
Speaking the truth comes at a cost.
When those responsible are not held accountable, fear spreads faster than facts. Journalists learn where the invisible limits are. And when fear becomes normal, silence slowly replaces journalism.
India: Where Democracy Slowly Grows Quiet
India is often called the world’s largest democracy. But democracy is not only about elections or numbers. It is about how much truth a country is willing to face.
The reality is uncomfortable.
Since 2010, more than 50 journalists in India have been killed because of their reporting. Most of them were not chasing national headlines. They were reporting from the ground on local corruption, land and mining mafias, political influence, and organised crime that directly affects everyday lives.
In many of these cases, justice never arrived. The journalist was silenced. The story faded. And the people who needed that truth never received it.
This silence creates fear not just among journalists, but among everyone who believes truth should be spoken without fear.
Not Every Attack Is Visible
Silencing a journalist does not always mean murder. Most of the time, it happens quietly, without headlines.
It starts with threats disguised as friendly advice to stay silent. It continues with physical attacks that are later brushed off as small or accidental incidents. False cases are filed, not to win in court, but to drain time, money, and energy. Abuse and threats on social media follow, meant to shame journalists and scare their families.
How long can someone work like this?
Many journalists report without job security, legal protection, or strong organisations standing behind them. They are expected to be fearless while being left completely alone.
Over time, this pressure changes journalism itself. Stories are stopped before they are published. Investigations are left unfinished. Truth is edited, softened, or delayed not because it is false, but because survival becomes more important than speaking out.
When fear decides what can be reported, can we still call it free journalism?
And if journalism is not free, how long can democracy remain honest?
When Silence Becomes Normal
Every time a journalist stays quiet to stay safe, something important is lost. Not just a story, but a warning that could have protected people. Journalism exists to tell society when something is going wrong.
When that warning disappears, danger grows quietly.
Without journalists:
- Power goes unchecked
- corruption becomes routine
- Lies slowly turn into accepted truth
Democracy rarely collapses on the streets. It weakens inside newsrooms, homes, and minds while everything still looks normal.
Republic Day: Time to Ask Real Questions
Republic Day is not just about parades, flags, or speeches. It should make us pause and ask whether we are truly celebrating a democracy where truth can be silenced. A day meant to honour the Constitution must also remind us that if journalists are afraid to speak, then the freedom we celebrate exists only on paper.
This is not just a celebration. It is a test.
We must ask ourselves:
- Are journalists really free to report today?
- Does the system protect truth or punish it?
- Do we want facts, or only stories that feel comfortable?
A country cannot call itself democratic if those who speak the truth feel unsafe.
Conclusion: If Truth Is Unsafe, Democracy Is Incomplete
Journalists are not asking to be heroes. They are asking for something basic: safety, fairness, and the freedom to report without fear. They carry the burden of exposing corruption and injustice, often knowing the cost could be their peace, their families, or their lives.
This Republic Day, celebrating the Constitution is not enough. We must ask whether we are protecting those who protect the truth or silently watching as they are threatened, harassed, and pushed into silence.
If journalism survives only in textbooks, if truth exists only on social media, and if lies go unchallenged, then we must ask: what kind of democracy are we living in?
Because a democracy without fearless journalism is not fully alive.
It is only being performed.
Sources (for reference)
- Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ)
- International Federation of Journalists (IFJ)
- UNESCO Journalist Safety Reports
- Indian press freedom and legal records
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