Attention-diversion seems to have become a familiar tactic used by many current politicians for different purposes. Magicians are believed to use such techniques with perfection to mesmerize the spectators. At a different level, criminals use it for theft, pick-pocketing in buses and trains, and chain-snatching in the streets. Today, political establishments are increasingly resorting to such techniques, and with lethal effects. Evidence of such behavior is visible in the Sushant Singh Rajput (SSR) death case, which is used and misused with ulterior motives by many including the media. Politics is clearly at play, and other vested interests too may have stepped into the scene to make a mess out of what could have been a normal police investigation.
Popular Hindi film and TV serial actor SSR’s death by hanging from a ceiling fan – in his apartment in Mumbai on June 14 – was a tragic incident. Initial Mumbai police reports claimed it to be a suicide and that set the ball rolling. Sushant was reported to be under treatment for depression. There were also allegations of nepotism in the Mumbai film industry that added to his woes. The following days saw fresh theories being advanced every single day and TV channels like Repulsive TV played out conspiracy theories dime a dozen. Over a month later, Sushant’s parents in Patna brought forth allegations against his girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty and five others. They were blamed for his death. SSR’s parents filed a complaint with the police in Patna, which suggested that they did not trust the investigations in Mumbai. Keeping Bihar elections in sight, the state police, unknown for efficiency, sprang into action and landed up at Mumbai. The police team that arrived in Mumbai from Patna was quarantined by the Maharashtra government, allegedly to stall their investigations in the metropolis. It turned into a state-versus-state row for the media to play with. By mid-August, in the midst of all these, the Supreme Court allowed the CBI to take over the investigations. Later, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) stepped in.
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Politics obviously is playing multiple roles in the Sushant saga after his death. The name of Aaditya Thackeray, Cabinet minister and son of chief minister Uddhav Thackeray, came up prominently as one who interacted with SSR shortly before his death. In this context, fresh aspersions were cast on the Maharashtra Police investigations. However, present reports have conveniently forgotten Aaditya, which may be due to lack of evidence to connect him. The BJP’s support to the cacophony over the SSR death too signified it sought to fish in troubled waters.
Worse, the current media frenzy running through the third month at a stretch after the death is seen as part of a motivated attempt by the powers-that-be at the Centre to divert public attention from the pressing issues of the day. The nation is facing its worst plight in the aftermath of the Covid-linked lockdowns, which virtually shut down the nation for over five months, and the pandemic scenario is still worsening. Demonetization followed by GST rollout contracted the economy to scary levels. Now, with a hit from Covid, the financial super structure is seen to be collapsing. This is evident from the call by the Centre to states, to borrow money from RBI and make up for the GST collection shortfall and failure of the Centre to keep up with its promise to the states in this respect. Governmental performance in every sector is seriously affected, and things are turning from bad to worse.
Now, dominant sections of the media have little time or space to highlight the distress of the nation. They are concentrating mainly on the SSR case, debating for days on end whether it was a simple case of suicide or more, and what role Rhea Chakraborty and others played in the death. This is going on and on; one day, a debate on the role of the Maharashtra Police; another day on the accusations from the actor’s parents; then on the Supreme Court nod for CBI probe; so on and so forth. Clearly, these are nothing more than an attention-diversion tactic to bail out the government in present times. That apart, the media seems to have realised that the upper and middle class of urbanised India laps up such titillation eagerly and is happy for the diversions. The more shocking the story angle, the more the views. The general public probably finds this to be a filmy plot. Newer characters are being thrown into the ring for increasing the excitement. One actor in particular, Kangana Ranaut has benefited greatly by spewing venom against her film colleagues in the matter of nepotism and casting aspersions on Rhea Chakraborty. As a reward, she has been given Y Plus Class security by the Centre for which she has profusely thanked Union Home Minister Amit Shah. While a death and charges of nepotism in the film industry were the main subjects of investigations, the involvement of ED and NCB is constantly changing the plot. Rhea’s brother Showik Chakraborty and two others have been arrested by the NCB for allegedly sourcing curated marijuana. Rhea is also being questioned by the same agency for alleged drug connections. Sadly, the mainline investigation into the real reasons for SSR’s death is being sidelined by the agencies with a purpose. The narrative needs to continue long like a Hindi movie. Maybe the plot needs to be thickened so that people’s attention remains steadfast. The actor’s death, possibly, could have been investigated as a standalone case. The investigative agencies seem to be more interested in fueling media frenzy and not focusing on the original issue.
