It has come to our notice that the Indian language press is almost unanimous in condemning the new Press Act, which has come into force in the state of Mysore. All freedom loving people have found fault with this new act, which gives the Diwan unrestrained powers to suppress and ban newspapers that try to drive a wedge between the government and the subjects by publishing unfounded stories. It is learnt that the act not only empowers the government to exile those editors who act against the interests of the government, but also, if found necessary, to confiscate the printing presses of the erring papers. The rules and regulations of the act will be applicable not only to newspapers being printed in Mysore but also to those papers that are circulated in Mysore after having them printed elsewhere.

While writing critically about this act, a fellow newspaper has a piece of advice for the newspapers of Travancore, although such a remark was not called for from them. The paper would like to have the voice of the vernacular language papers of Travancore subdued so as not to give the King a cause for enacting a law to gag the vernacular language press. It has also flagged one or two papers which flayed the actions of the king on certain matters. We have not come across any newspaper in this land whose criticism of the king is so corrosive as to provoke this paper to write admonishingly about journalistic conduct and ethics. Our fellow newspaper has not pointed its accusing finger at any paper in particular either. The words and deeds of not only the Travancore newspapers but also of the people of the state as a whole have proven beyond doubt that they remain more loyal to the king than ever. But remaining loyal to the king does not mean turning a blind eye to the corruption and trespass of the king’s officials and the resultant frustration into which the public has plunged. If there are people who remain meekly submissive to the excesses of the officials, then alert minds cannot but chastise them.

Foremost among the curses that have plagued the state of Travancore of late is the arrogance of some officials who have proximity to the king coupled with the impudence of certain other officials who behave autocratically. The people’s representatives have long demanded the purging of corruption from public life; a person will only be happy to be obedient to a king who is committed to the prosperity of his subjects. But people are neither obliged nor required to pay attention to these officials who have taken refuge in the palace and have indulged in corruption in the name of the king. We do not like to be counted among the king’s loyal subjects, if being loyal to him means keeping quiet about the criminal propensities of his fawning officials in order to win their favours. There will also be people who consider criticising the corrupt officials an honour. The question of committing sedition does not arise in Travancore as the state is under the suzerainty of the British government. The people, therefore, have no right to raise objections to British dominance. The subjects pay obeisance to the king as though he were their family patriarch; they only air their grievances about the excesses of the corrupt that bring ignominy to the family in the name of the patriarch. People will continue to raise their outcry in one form or the other until the causes of their grievances are completely rooted out; and the forms of protest in regard to the grievances of the people may take on different forms depending on the mood and disposition of the protesters, which need not be taken into account seriously. In pursuance of the scholar who has opined that the best way to eradicate sedition is to root out the causes leading to it, we also feel that it is not by blocking the expressions of protests but by eradicating the causes occasioning such protests that they have to be addressed effectively.

It is not today or yesterday that the people of this land cultivated the habit of hating administrative measures that run counter to public interest; the ancient history of Kerala itself is replete with examples of people quarrelling with autocratic kings and rulers. The habit of adopting a strident position against corruption and trespasses has stayed with the people for generations. Therefore, it will not be surprising if they, especially when western education and the principles of modern state and government have taken root in the land, speak despicably about the corruption and excesses of autocratic officials. What is needed in Travancore now is not a law aimed at curbing press freedom but an administrative system capable of running the affairs of the state free from corruption and inefficiency, keeping true to truth and justice. The strident voice of the papers in Travancore will certainly come down as and when the corruption and abuse of power on the part of the king’s servants are subdued considerably. The protesting voices of the people will continue to be heard so long as the people’s concern for eradicating corruption and trespasses remain unanswered. It is also certain that no prohibitive order will serve the purpose of getting rid of the people’s god-given gift of hating corruption as long as the people in power continue to patronise the corrupt officials.