Mangalore, November 8: The arrest of city based television journalist Naveen Soorinje has triggered protests from activists, politicians and members of media across the state.
While media fraternity has termed the police action against Mr Soorinje as an assault on freedom of press, political representatives from Congress, Janata Dal (Secular) and other parties have strongly condemned the arrest.
Media fraternity staged protests in Mangalore, Bangalore, Bellary and other parts of the state demanding the immediate release of the report of 'Kasturi News 24/7' Kannada news channel.
Around four dozen journalists under the banner of Dakshina Kannada Working Journalists' Union (DKWJU) met Commissioner of Police Manish Kharbikar at his office urging him to take appropriate measures to withdraw cases against Mr Soorinje and Sharan from Sahaya TV who according to them, were wrongly booked in homestay attack case.
Criticising the police for not taking the Union into confidence in the case, the journalists demanded the Commissioner to conduct a re-investigation of the case.
Speaking on the occasion DKWJU president P B Harish Rai said that though police had assured the Union of fair and transparent investigation in homestay attack case, they failed to take media persons into confidence.
“Initially the police had assured as that a joint committee comprising of senior police officers and journalists would be formed before taking any action as far as the case against two journalists is concerned. However, they neither formed such committee nor took us into confidence”, he said.
Members of visual media, who gathered in front of DC office to protest the arrest, lambasted Mangalore police for what they said fixing an honest journalist in false case. In a memorandum submitted to the Deputy Commissioner of Dakshina Kannada district they termed Mr Soorinje's arrest as illegal and demanded his immediate release.
They also demanded that two police personnel should be deployed for the security of Mr Soorinje in the prison till his release as many of the inmates have criminal records.
Former union minister B Janardhan Poojary and Congress leader B Ramanath Rai have termed the arrest as an attempt to curb the freedom of press.
Lashing out at Mangalore City Police for the arrest Mr Surinje, Karnataka chapter of Peoples Union for Civil Liberties, has said that all the allegations against him are baseless.
In a media release issued here PUCL state president P B D'Sa said that the journalist was arrested on cooked up grounds by Mangalore Police just because he revealed the truth about the infamous homestay attack of July 28.
Terming the arrest as attack on freedom of press, he said that all should condemn this act of the police. “This shows that the freedom of press is under threat”, he said.
The reason for the arrest of Mr Soorinje is that he exposed that the communal goons had carried out the attack with the active collaboration of the city police, Mr D'Sa said.
“When Mr Soorinje had called the inspector of the jurisdictional police station to Inform about the attack during the incident, the latter did not receive the calls for nearly 15 minutes. This proved that police had prior information of the attack”, he said.
Mr D'Sa also said that police after reaching the spot, enjoyed the act of goons who were assaulting boys and molesting girls in the name of preserving Hindu culture.
Related:
TV journalist Naveen Soorinje arrested in 'homestay' attack case
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