Journalist Arrested By Punjab Cops After Road Accident Gets Bail: Report
A journalist who was arrested by the Punjab Police has been granted bail
New Delhi:
A journalist who was arrested by the Punjab Police after a road accident while on an assignment has been granted bail by the Punjab and Haryana High Court, Live Law reported.
Bhavana Kishore of Times Now, who was involved in the accident, was taken away in a car by a policeman without the presence of women personnel, which is against well-established procedures, the Editors Guild of India said.
The first information report (FIR) filed against the reporter with a police station in Ludhiana “appears excessive and with undue haste”, it said.
EGI statement on arrest of Times Now journalist by Punjab police pic.twitter.com/J4Hnk1SRIa
— Editors Guild of India (@IndEditorsGuild) May 6, 2023
The guild said given that the reporter was on an assignment, law enforcement agencies should have exercised due restraint with respect to detention and subsequent filing of FIR.
The Indian Women’s Press Corps (IWPC), the National Union of Journalists (India) and the Press Club of India (PCI) had also condemned the arrest of the reporter, her cameraperson and their car’s driver.
The PCI termed the reporter’s arrest as a “blatant attack on the rights of a journalist”.
“We demand immediate withdrawal of fake and lopsided charges made against her by Punjab Police and seek Punjab chief minister’s intervention in this matter,” it said.
With inputs from ANI
