By: Editorial Published in: *The Wire* Date: May 19, 2026 Source: https://thewire.in/media/why-the-silencing-of-helle-lyng-is-not-a-sideshow *Note:* Please access the source to read the entire article.
"It shines a sharp light onto the descent of India’s public sphere and barely-free media." "The gagging of the Indian media is now normalised after 12 years of a government obsessed with evading questions, either outrightly denying data, or not making data accessible. It is capped by zero press conferences by the prime minister – a first in independent India. But there are moments when it gets shown up starkly, breaking the fever. This often happens in a particular context – in democracies with a press willing to push the envelope. A woman journalist, Helle Lyng, a commentator in the Norwegian newspaper *Dagsavisen, *attempted to ask Prime Minister Narendra Modi questions <https://thewire.in/media/modi-refusal-press-questions-norwegian-journalist-helle-lyng> which he and his entourage no doubt heard, but then went on to disregard completely. For a PM who has yet to address a single press conference in his near 13 years in the top job, answering Lyng would have been unthinkable. This, despite the fact that he is projected as a wildly popular leader and is arguably one who assumes and returns to power with the people’s mandate. Lyng said she asked questions as 'in Norway, when foreign leaders visit. The press usually will get to ask questions. Not many, but a few. That was not the case today with Modi, and will not be tomorrow either.' Later, Lyng was invited by the Indian embassy – publicly on social media – to a presser by diplomats, a far different deal than a presser with the PM. She attended it and when she asked why Norway should trust India given its human rights situation, she was told, incredibly, that India is the land of yoga, has handled COVID well, and exports vaccines and medicines."
