Electronic media under cloud over Sandeep kin's suicide bid

Police also allege that the camera crew were able to reach the spot in advance to film the scene, but the journalists did not attempt to report the incident.

“During preliminary investigation of the case, we learnt that Mohanan had informed a few media persons about his plan before he took the extreme step. They reached the spot with their outdoor broadcasting vans and recorded the self- immolation bid by Mohanan,” a senior police officer said on condition of anonymity.

The officer declined to answer questions whether any of the journalist was suspected of abetting Mohanan’s suicide attempt saying the case is under investigation and information received “needs to be verified.”

“We are still not sure why he (Mohanan) took such an extreme step as he didn’t make a clear statement. As far as we could understand, he was deeply pained by his nephew’s (Sandeep) death in 26/11 and was dissatisfied with the government action,” the officer said. Mohanan said he wanted to feel the pain that his nephew Sandeep would have suffered as he was dying during the Mumbai terror attack, the officer disclosed referring to a diary and a suicide note recovered from Mohanan after the incident.

He, however, rued that  Mohanan’s suicide bid could have been prevented by these journalists. “Instead they were keen on taking footage of a person burning alive,”  the officer said.

According to police sources, Mohanan in the documents recovered from him had written: “The administrators and representatives of the political parties could not do anything for the victims of the 26/11 attack. It was actually a war against two nations. Anyone can come to India and do anything in India.”