Jamshedpur, April 11: Journalists in the steel city held a meeting at Jubilee Park on Monday in the wake of the reported police assault on scribes and press photographers at Sitaramdera police station on Sunday late evening.
At the meet, all the city journalists along with some from the rural areas protested against the police action on the scribes and photographers on Sunday evening. Some of the journalists, who were part of the backlash said, �We were part of the planned conspiracy and police attacked us even after asking our identity.�
Several media persons sustained serious injuries during the assault. The attack on journalists could not have been possible without orders from senior police officers. According to one journalist present at the meeting, the attack was aimed to crush and frighten impartial journalism.
The scribes demanded a high-level inquiry into the incident so that the mastermind behind the attack could be identified and punished by the government. The meeting also urged the government to ensure that such incidents do not occur in the future.
Journalists have given the East Singhbhum SP 48 hours time period to initiate stern actions against the culprits. They have threatened to launch state-wide protest if action is not taken. Meanwhile, they have decided to continue with their tasks wearing black badges as a symbol of protest against alleged police atrocities.
At the meeting it was decided that a team of journalists will visit Ranchi and meet the Governor demanding a judicial inquiry into the incident. On the other hand, journalists in Ranchi submitted a memorandum to DGP DK Pandey and ADG Anurag Gupta demanding prompt actions against the culprits. The DGP has assured of action.
