I have resigned from my current position as a Senior Correspondent with Republic TV with immediate effect. Below is the sequence of events that led to my resignation.
Photo: Facebook
On 30th August 2017, my reporting manager (an editor who I would not like to name) came up to me and said that Arnab Goswami suspects me of being a mole planted by Shashi Tharoor in the organization, the reason being, Mr Tharoor follows me on Twitter.
If the proposition wasn’t ridiculous enough, I was further told that I have signed a petition on Change.org pertaining to Mr Tharoor a few years back, which has further raised suspicions.
The witch-hunt did not end there. Later that day I was informed that it was in fact my Reporting Manager who diligently spent time going through my social network profiles and later proposed that I may be a Spy and also took it up with Arnab Goswami.
The humiliation continued for a few more days. My financial status was inquired (proposing that I may have been getting paid by Mr. Tharoor); my colleagues were questioned on whether I try to extract information.
My twitter cover picture was misinterpreted to question my loyalty (A famous poem that still continues to be my cover picture).
It was only in late September when I finally raised it up with Arnab. I narrated the ordeal to him and the fact it has taken a hit on my morale. There was no concrete response.
To set the record straight, I have never met/contacted/known Mr Tharoor in any capacity. Nobody bothered to clarify. I was left in the lurch. My loyalty questioned, my vanity hurt.
I am not the first person to have the kind of scrutiny of my character, before me there were other colleagues who have faced worst. I am confident, there will be more. Question is-how long before the organization pulls the plug?
This isn’t the first time either that this sort of humiliation was meted out to me. On 30th May, 2017 I had done a sting operation on a sitting SHO for a story.
Later at around 7 PM, the editor called me up and accused me of ‘flirting’ with the SHO. When I protested, she threatened to make the conversation public and destroy my career.
The culture of fear, intimidation and harassment I have seen in the last few months is unparalleled. My only concern, it goes unquestioned.
Last nail in the coffin came on 9th of October when I was unceremoniously dropped from the Special Projects team at 1.30 AM. When I tried questioning the rationale behind it, my reporting manager said, “it is beneath my dignity to talk to you.”
Sadly, when I once again brought it to the notice of the top bosses, there was no intervention.
I have previously been associated with two fantastic organizations and have worked with industry stalwarts. Never have I witnessed such vindictive and vicious conduct.
While I am thankful to the organization for giving me a great learning experience and abundant opportunities, I hope this pattern of vilification of employees on basis hearsay ceases to exist.
It has taken a great amount of courage to pen this down, against the advice of many of my well wishers who believe that this may hamper my career prospects.
Perhaps it will, but if I don’t speak up today, what good am I as a journalist?
This journalist haa received searching questions from leading activist SP Udayakumar
The Republic TV journalist crying hoarse about ethics gets an appropriate response from a victim of the journalism she practised for her bosses..
From: S. P. Udayakumar
To: Ms. Shweta Kothari
Hope you remember me, Shweta. You visited my home on April 8, 2017, received my free books, enjoyed my family’s hospitality and backstabbed me and my family so mercilessly and cruelly. You lied to me that your name was Shweta Sharma and that you were a “research scholar” from the Cardiff University in the UK. You asked for my help with your “dissertation research.”
On April 9, 2017 you requested me to stop by your hotel room as you had a few more questions. There you told me “one of [your] British professors” was very keen on supporting our struggle against the Koodankulam nuclear power plant.
On both those occasions, you were secretly recording me and my conversation illegally, immorally and indelicately without any qualms about the journalistic ethos. It is interesting to note that you are upset that Arnab Goswami suspected you of “being a mole.” I am sure you have heard the saying “those who take up the sword shall perish by the sword.” Your calm demeanor, gentle head shake, deceitful smile, ungrateful attitude, lying through your teeth and the sheer criminality all make you very capable of being a mole of not just an MP but a whole array of foreign agencies.
When your criminal boss called you a mole, the proposition was “ridiculous,” and even a “witch-hunt” for you. But when you accused thousands and thousands of hardworking and well-meaning ordinary citizens of India of being stooges of the Catholic Church, greedy for foreign money and all that abhorrent nonsense without a shred of any evidence, you thought it was high class journalism, right?
You are raving and ranting about your “Reporting Manager who diligently spent time going through my social network profiles and later proposed that I maybe a SPY and also took it up with Arnab Goswami.” How interesting! You walked into my home, spent hours with an unsuspecting host family (comprising my aged parents, trusting wife, friendly son), recorded all the conversations secretly exactly as a SPY would do and betrayed our love and trust.
Oh, so “[t]he humiliation continued for a few more days,” eh? Your “financial status was inquired (proposing that [you] may have been getting paid by Mr Tharoor),” ha? Your colleagues were questioned on whether “[you] try to extract information, right?
How many days did you, your stupid boss and other morons in your TV humiliated us, the noble people who have been struggling against an authoritarian government who was imposing dangerous nuclear projects on us? Didn’t you probe our financial status and try to extract information through SPY cameras and hidden equipment, Shweta?
They questioned your “loyalty” too? And you have a “famous poem that still continues to be [your] cover picture” on Twitter? And does it talk about loyalty, Shweta? Very funny! You know that word, ha? Do you know what it means to be “loyal”?
You are crying aloud now: “Nobody bothered to clarify. I was left in the lurch. My loyalty questioned, my vanity hurt.” It does hurt, doesn’t it, Shweta? Other human beings also have similar feelings, you know? You are hurt by the “scrutiny of character” that Arnab and his mad gang did on you? Weren’t you doing the same on us all, just a few months back and crying hoarse to the whole country on your TV without even asking yourself if it was all fair to do so.
And on 30th May, 2017, you “had done a sting operation on a sitting SHO for a story” and your Editor accused you of ‘flirting’ with the SHO? How sad! Your Editor “threatened to make the conversation public and destroy [your] career”? I wonder what you guys talked about. The conversation must have been that randy and rousing to destroy someone’s career.
When my teenage son came to know about your stinking “sting operation” on me, do you know what he said, Shweta: “This woman could have killed you ‘Pa!” If one keeps on doing this kind of “sting operation” for a living, one will not only flirt or fornicate, s/he would even murder!
I particularly like your statement: “The culture of fear, intimidation and harassment I have seen in the last few months is unparalleled.” You also say: “Never have I witnessed such vindictive and vicious conduct.” These are nice statements, Shweta! Do you realize now what you have been doing to unsuspecting people like me with your criminal bosses? Read these statements aloud in front of a mirror, Shweta! You may understand better!
It’s really funny that you are still “thankful to the organisation for giving [you] a great learning experience and abundant opportunities…” Opportunity to do what? To do what they have been doing to you, right? You have not regretted a bit about the wretched things you have been doing to other people. You only want Arnab and the gang to stop “this pattern of vilification of employees on the basis hearsay.” If they do, your Arnab, your nosy Editor and all others will continue to be good, noble and nationalistic leaders and you are quite fine with them. Right, Shweta?
You close your great manifesto with the simple question “what good am I as a journalist?” You may be anything, a spy, a mole, or an infiltrator as your bosses allege! But certainly not a good journalist! And you know what, what you sow, so shall you reap!
Retweeted Shweta Kothari (@Shwkothari):
Statement- Why I resigned from Republic TV.