Media bodies condemn attack on Deepak Chaurasia at Shaheen Bagh

Media bodies on Saturday condemned the alleged attack on News Nation consulting editor Deepak Chaurasia by protesters at Delhi's Shaheen Bagh and demanded police action against perpetrators of the violence.

In a statement, the News Broadcasters Federation (NBF) said it is extremely concerned about the repeated instances of violence directed at journalists in the line of duty at Shaheen Bagh.

The Indian Women's Press Corps, in a statement, said it unequivocally condemns the use of physical force against all journalists and stands in solidarity with them.

These attacks have been fuelled by a growing spirit of intolerance by those claiming to be protestors at Shaheen Bagh, NBF president Arnab Goswami said in a statement.

"The most recent attack on senior journalist Deepak Chaurasia and his camera crew at Shaheen Bagh, which was recorded on camera, reflects the growing hostility of some of those at Shaheen Bagh towards journalists unwilling to toe their line," he said.

In recent weeks there have been similar attacks on several other TV journalists in the course of which camera equipment has been broken and destroyed and some journalists, including those who were victims of Friday's attack, have had to be hospitalised, Goswami said.

The NBF, which is the largest such organisation of news broadcasters pan India, demands immediate police action against those who have perpetrated the violence and seeks solidarity among all members of the Indian media against this relentless attack on reporters, and editors of news media organisations, he said.

Police said Chaurasia, 51, complained to them saying he was beaten up and his camera was snatched by a mob at the protest site.

An FIR has been registered under sections 394 (voluntarily causing hurt in committing robbery) and 34 (common intention) against unknown persons at the Shaheen Bagh police station, a senior police officer said.

The IWPC said it notes with deep distress and concern the Friday violence against the group of journalists by a section of people protesting at Shaheen Bagh in New Delhi.

Chaurasia, Doordarshan reporter Nitendra Singh and their team of camera persons were manhandled by a group of protesters at the site and physically prevented from discharging their journalistic duties, it said.

A Times of India photo journalist was also reportedly threatened by some protesters while he was taking shots around the location of the agitation, the IWPC said.

Such attacks compromise and gravely undermine the media's constitutionally and legally guaranteed rights to gather and disseminate information, it said.

Violence and use of force against journalists undermines media freedom and needs to be condemned in the strongest terms by one and all, it added.

On his Twitter handle, Chaurasia uploaded a one-minute video in which he was seen surrounded by protestors and later manhandled by them. They tried to remove him from the spot and also snatched his microphone.

In another part of the video, a group of men can be seen trying to snatch a camera from the cameraman.