Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram   

SP to probe attack on journalists

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Home Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan said in the Assembly on Wednesday that he had instructed the Superintendent of Police, Kottayam, to take strong action in the case relating to the attack on journalists and the Malayala Manorama office in Kottayam.

“The government does not encourage attacks on journalists and media establishments,” he told the House after the Leader of the Opposition Oommen Chandy raised the issue in the Assembly.

Staff Reporter adds from Kottayam: The attack on journalists allegedly by activists of the Students Federation of India (SFI) on Wednesday has drawn protest from all quarters.

The Kerala Union of Working Journalists (KUWJ) called a meeting of its district unit and passed a resolution protesting against the attacks on journalists and called upon the authorities to take immediate steps to ensure that mediapersons were allowed to carry out their duty without fear. They took out a protest march and submitted a complaint to the Superintendent of Police demanding immediate steps to book the culprits. KUWJ district president Punnuse Mathen; secretary A.P. Shajudeen; leader of Kerala Newspaper Employees Federation Varghese Chembola; and others spoke at a sit-in held in front of the District Collectorate later.

Kerala Congress(M) leader K.M. Mani visited the journalists at the Medical College Hospital. Later, talking to reporters, he said the attack on journalists had shown how SFI activists were intolerant of dissent. They have conveyed that those who think, act or protest against the deeds of the Left have no space, he said. The violence perpetrated by the SFI activists showed that the administration was slipping away from the hands of the government and was being taken over by goondas, he said. This would lead the State to anarchy, he said. He called for an inquiry into the incidents .

CPI(M) district secretary K.J. Thomas said the attack on journalists was unfortunate. The SFI activists who were returning after a march were attacked by Youth Congress activists near Malayala Manorama and the journalists were caught between these two groups.

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