After hundreds of journalists marched from the Press Club of India to the Home Ministry on Monday, 26 March, protesting the alleged molestation of a woman journalist by a Station House Officer (SHO) during a student protest last week, a First Information Report (FIR) was filed against the accused.
Journalists from several media organisations also protested the manhandling of another female photojournalist Anushree Fadnavis.
Hundreds of agitating journalists had demanded a First Information Report (FIR) against the accused officer for allegedly molesting the reporter while she was covering the JNU padyatra protest on 23 March.
The reporter has alleged that she was molested by SHO Vidhyadhar Singh. A statement put out by Delhi Police said:
Based on the findings of vigilance enquiry , a case under section 354 A IPC has been registered at PS Sarojini Nagar on the complaint of an alleged molestation given by the woman journalist pertaining to the incident of crowd dispersal on 23/3/2016. In the interest of fair and impartial probe, SHO Delhi Cantt has been transferred to District Lines. The case has also been transferred to crime branch for further investigation.
“The Delhi Police personnel, which is supposed to protect us, are molesting journalists. Imagine the message that it sends,” said senior journalist Neerja Chowdhury at the protest.
It makes no sense as to why an FIR is not lodged and her camera is not yet returned. The journalist was not protesting or doing something illegal. She was just doing her job covering the event.Neerja Chowdhury at the protest
“Why is it that only journalists come forward to protest against the atrocities we face,” said senior scribe Raveesh Kumar.
The Delhi Police said it will file a vigilance report in the case in 48 hours. Earlier, the PRO had apologised for the unfortunate incident, saying they “mistook the photojournalist for a protester.”
Earlier this week, journalists had kept their cameras on ground as a mark of protest outside the Delhi Police headquarters.
The incident with the photojournalist happened when a large number of JNU students and teachers were stopped on Friday, 23 March, from marching to the Parliament Complex over various demands, including academic freedom, with police resorting to lathicharge and use of water canons.
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