Srinagar: Even as India dropped two places in this year’s World Press Freedom Index, wherein it figures at the bottom of the list, Information and Broadcasting Minister, Prakash Javadekar claimed that media in the country “enjoy absolute freedom”.
Taking to twitter on the occasion of World Press Freedom Day on Sunday, Javadekar said that the government “will expose, sooner than later, those surveys that tend to portray bad picture about ‘Freedom of Press’ in India”.
The minister’s statement coincides with the release of the annual World Press Freedom Index-2020 released by the RSF (Reporters Without Borders), wherein India figures at rank 142 in a list of 180 countries- way behind many neighbouring countries including Afghanistan, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka.
India has dropped two positions as compared to last years rankings.
Pakistan, Russia and Bangladesh, which rank lower in the table, figure at spots 145, 149 and 151 in the World Press Freedom Index 2020 respectively.

Reader correspondent