Supreme Court Relief For Journalists 'Beaten By Police' Over Sand Mining Report

The Supreme Court on Monday granted interim protection from arrest to two Madhya Pradesh journalists who accused police from Bhind district of harassment and assault, and of making threats to their lives. The court said no coercive action could be taken against them.

A bench of Justice PK Mishra and Justice Manmohan also directed the journalists to move the Madhya Pradesh High Court, and that the matter should be heard within two weeks.

The two journalists are Sashikant Goyal, who works for a regional publication called Dainik Bejor Ratna, and Amarkant Chauhan, who is the district bureau chief for Swaraj Express.

Both had filed reports on illegal sand mining by local criminal gangs.

In the last hearing - before Justice SC Sharma - the Supreme Court had refused interim protection and also posed several questions to the lawyer representing the journalists.

The court noted it could not grant 'blanket protection' without knowledge of the charges.

"Why did you not tell us you (also) approached Delhi High Court? Can we grant this kind of blanket protection without knowing the charges? The phantom of a story you presented before us while mentioning the same case cannot be made out from content of petitions."

"It is very easy to make allegations against a police officer," Justice Sharma said.

The court did, however, issue notices to the police.

And today, after going through those responses, the Supreme Court softened its stand, granting Mr Goyal and Mr Chauhan interim protection from arrest. Greater relief, i.e., anticipatory bail cannot be granted without hearing the police's version of events, the court observed.

The Press Club of India, the Indian Women's Press Corps, and the Delhi Union of Journalists, meanwhile, has condemned reports of the journalists being beaten by the police, and called for punitive action against the police, including Superintendent of Police Asit Yadav.

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