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- Published: January 29, 2021 12:58
New Delhi: Editors Guild of India condemned filing of FIRs against senior editors, journalists for reporting on farmers’ tractor parade and ensuing violence in Delhi on Republic Day, calling it an attempt to ‘intimidate, harass and stifle’ media.
In a statement, the Guild demanded that such FIRs be withdrawn immediately and the media be allowed to report without fear and with freedom.
It said journalists have been specifically targeted for reporting the accounts pertaining to the death of one of the protestors on their personal social media handles as well as those of the publications they lead and represent.
“It must be noted that on the day of the protest and high action, several reports were emerging from eyewitnesses on the ground as well as from police, and therefore it was only natural for journalists to report all the details as they emerged. This is in line with established norms of journalistic practice,” the Guild said.
The Editors Guild said it “strongly condemns the intimidating manner in the way in which the Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh Police” have registered FIRs against senior editors and journalists (including current and former office-bearers of EGI) for reporting on the farmers” protest rallies and the ensuing violence that took place in the national capital on January 26.
This comes after Congress MP Shashi Tharoor and six journalists have been booked by the Noida Police for sedition, among other charges, over the violence during the farmers” tractor rally in Delhi, officials said on Thursday.
The FIR was lodged following a complaint by a resident who alleged that “digital broadcast” and “social media posts” by these people were responsible for the violence during a tractor rally by farmers in the national capital.
The journalists named in the FIR are Mrinal Pande, Rajdeep Sardesai, Vinod Jose, Zafar Agha, Paresh Nath and Anant Nath. An unidentified person has also been named in the FIR.
Senior journalist and news anchor Rajdeep Sardesai has been taken off air for two weeks and a month’s salary was deducted by the India Today group for his tweet that claimed a farmer was shot dead in police firing during the tractor rally on 26 January.
