HC grants bail to television journalist; Punjab authorities are criticized for acting

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The Punjab and Haryana High Court granted bail to journalist Bhawana Kishore on Saturday, a day after she and two others were arrested by Punjab police when their vehicle allegedly hit a woman, injuring her the hand.

Several journalists’ organizations have condemned the police action after the TV journalist was convicted under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, in addition to charges of reckless driving, and “detained”.

The Publishers Guild said the FIR recorded against the journalist at a police station in Ludhiana “appears excessive and in excessive haste”.

In a statement, Times Now Navbharat said its reporter Kishore, cameraman Mrityunjay and a driver were arrested by Ludhiana police for “reckless driving and insulting Dalits” after a series of “orchestrated events”.

The media organization also alleged that Kishore was detained without any police officers present in the car and that she was denied legal and telephone access and was arrested after sunset.

The journalist had applied to the tribunal de grande instance to obtain the cancellation of the FIR.

Kishore’s lawyer, Chetan Mittal, said the court granted him interim bail and set May 8 as the next hearing date in the case.

Punjab police said the TV reporter along with two other people were arrested in Ludhiana on Friday after their vehicle allegedly hit a woman, causing a hand injury. They were also accused of using derogatory language towards the complainant.

In its statement, the TV channel said it was invited to cover an AAP political program hosted by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Punjab CM Bhagwat Mann in Ludhiana.

He alleged that a group of women in an e-rickshaw rammed their vehicle into the reporter’s car and got into a fight, adding that he has reason to believe the women were “motivated workers in the AAP”.

He claimed he was harassed because of the story’s coverage of the expenses incurred in renovating Kejriwal’s official residence.

However, AAP leader Atishi said no one is above the law and the Punjab Police must take the strongest possible action. She said the matter should be left to court.

The Editors Guild of India said that since the journalist was on assignment, law enforcement should have exercised restraint in relation to the detention and subsequent filing of an FIR.

“EGI urges the Punjab government to release the journalist from detention and direct its police to follow established procedures,” the guild said.

In its statement, Times Now Navbharat said the male police personnel accompanying Bhavana did not wear name badges, which is a mandatory requirement while on duty.

“This is not only a gross abuse of the state apparatus for vendetta purposes, but also an abuse and disrespect of SC/ST law which is wrongly invoked and without any cause for intimidation. Times Network is seeking legal redress and cooperating with investigating authorities,” the media organization said.

The Indian Women’s Press Corps (IWPC), the National Union of Journalists (India) and the Press Club of India (PCI) condemned the arrest of the journalist, her cameraman and their car driver.

“The IWPC requests immediate assistance from the young reporter, cameraman and driver,” it said in a statement.

”As the policewomen were not present when the journalists were arrested, we urge the authorities to take strict action against the police personnel at fault for not following the policing standards to be observed when arresting journalists. ‘a woman’, the IWPC said.

The PCI called the journalist’s arrest a “flagrant violation of a journalist’s rights”.

“We demand the immediate withdrawal of the false and unbalanced charges made against her by the Punjab Police and seek the intervention of the Chief Minister of Punjab in this matter,” he said.

South Asian women in the media also demanded that the matter be investigated and called for the journalists’ immediate release.

The Punjab police action was “a direct attack on the Fourth Estate” and “a new low” for the country’s democratic values, said Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri.

Punjab Governor Banwarilal Purohit discussed the issue with Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Saturday and said such incidents “do not send a good message about the state”, official sources said.

The governor called Mann and expressed his feelings about the reporter’s arrest, they said.

He also urged the Chief Minister to release the journalist.

(This story has not been edited by the Devdiscourse team and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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