Congress president Rahul Gandhi has criticised Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath over the arrest of journalists for sharing and broadcasting alleged derogatory comments against the CM.
“If every journalist who files a false report or peddles fake, vicious RSS/BJP sponsored propaganda about me is put in jail, most newspapers/ news channels would face a severe staff shortage. The UP CM is behaving foolishly & needs to release the arrested journalists.” Rahul Gandhi tweeted.
Rahul’s comments back the need for protecting media freedom and come after protests against the arrest of 3 journalists including Prashant Kanojia.
Soon after Rahul’s tweet, Supreme Court ordered immediate release of Prashant Kanojia, on a plea filed by his wife. The fate of the other two arrested journalists is not known immediately.
Kanojia had shared a video on Twitter and Facebook where a woman is seen speaking to reporters of various media organisations outside the chief minister’s office claiming that she had sent a marriage proposal to Yogi Adityanath.
An FIR was registered against Kanojia at the Hazratganj police station in Lucknow on Friday night.
The UP police had also cracked down on a private television news channel Nation Live in Noida for allegedly running without a license, a day after arresting its chief Ishika Singh and editor Anuj Shukla, also for broadcasting content allegedly defaming Yogi Adityanath.
The police action has led to outrage in media circles. The Editors Guild of India criticised the arrest as “authoritarian misuse of laws.” A group of journalists also organized a protest against the arrest on Monday.