Two woman journalists arrested in Assam for reporting on communal violence in Tripura
The names of both were registered at the Tripura Police Station on the basis of a complaint by a VHP worker.
In yet another instance of crackdown on journalists in the state, two Delhi-based journalists who had come to Tripura to report on the recent communal incidents in the state were detained by the Assam Police at Neelam Bazar in Karimganj near the Assam-Tripura border. On Sunday, November 14, police officials in both states confirmed. Samriddhi Sakuniya (21) and Swaran Jha (25), journalists of independent news website HW News Network, were named in a first information report (FIR) at Fatikroy police station in Tripura on Sunday based on a complaint filed by Vishwa Hindu Parishad. . According to a statement by HW News, the (VHP) worker alleged that he has maligned the image of the Tripura government with his reporting. Both were first detained in a hotel in Agartala and then let go. Later, Tripura Police detained them from Assam, and kept them in the government-run shelter home for women for the night and would be handed over to Tripura Police on Monday morning, an Assam Police official said.
Two journalists were caught by the Assam Police on their way to the Silchar airport later on Sunday, after the Assam Police informed them that they were asked by the Tripura Police (Assam Police) to detain (both). The journalists were formally arrested on 15 November at 1 am.
Sakuniya wrote in a tweet, “We have been detained at Nilambazar Police Station, Karimganj, Assam. We were informed by the officer-in-charge of Nilambazar PS that the SP of Gomti district has ordered our detention. A senior in Agartala The police official said that they were detained based on the request of Tripura Police and a team of Tripura Police officials from Dharmanagar has gone to Nilambazar to bring them back.
The VHP’s complaint is about the story that two journalists were reporting, a mosque in Gomti district was torched and a copy of the Quran was damaged. The police claimed that the video uploaded by him was tampered with, a claim denied by the journalists. In the video, local residents can be heard speaking about the mosque and the Quran.
By tweeting on November 11, Sakuniya had written, ‘#TripurViolenceDarga Bazar: On October 19 at around 2.30 am, some unidentified people set the mosque on fire in Darga Bazar area. The people in the neighborhood are very upset that now they have no place to go and pray.”
A press release issued from the office of Tripura Director General of Police VS Yadav claimed that Sakuniya’s post was not correct and promoted a feeling of hatred among the communities. The statement further said that no damaged books or documents were brought to the notice of the authorities.
widespread condemnation of the arrest
The detention of young journalists has invited widespread condemnation from the fraternity, who have questioned the police for taking action against two journalists doing their job.
Organizations such as the Editors Guild of India (EGI), Indian Women’s Press Corps (IWPC), Network of Women in Media India (NWMI) and Digipub News India Foundation have condemned the detention of the two young journalists. “The Editors Guild condemns this action and calls for his immediate release and restoration of his freedom to travel,” EGI said in a statement.
We have been detained at the Nilambazar police station, Karimganj, Assam. We were informed by the officer in-charge of Nilambazar PS that SP of Gomti District gave the orders for our detention.
Official statement by @hwnewsnetwork . @Jha_Swarnaa pic.twitter.com/l3JPKUq7kw— Samriddhi K Sakunia (@Samriddhi0809) November 14, 2021
The IWPC also condemned the police action against the two journalists and demanded that they be allowed to do their work without any fear.
“We understand that the two women journalists, Ms. Sakuni and Ms. Jha, are to be taken back to Tripura for questioning,” the IWPC said, adding, “We demand that they be released immediately and that they be allowed to do their jobs.”
NWMI has demanded that the FIR against the two journalists be withdrawn, and it “views this round of legal action as an attempt to intimidate and silence those who are not aware of the truth about the communal violence in this state”. want to expose.”
DigiPub has said that it condemns “in the strongest terms” the “continuous pattern of bullying against journalists”.
DIGIPUB condemns in the strongest terms the intimidation against journalists of HW News Network. pic.twitter.com/yq2mLMI0GO
— DIGIPUB News India Foundation (@DigipubIndia) November 14, 2021
Around 14 October, reports emerged from Bangladesh about violence against Hindu minorities during Durga Puja over allegations of blasphemy. In light of this, political right-wing organizations Tripura began to oppose violence in Bangladesh, however, this led to political tensions in Tripura and resulted in communal violence. Along with the destruction of religious property, there were incidents of arson, looting and violence. On 26 October, major violence was reported during a rally by right-wing organizations including the VHP.
Two woman journalists arrested in Assam for reporting on communal violence in Tripura
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by News East India staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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