The Mumbai Press Club has condemned the arrest of ABP Majha reporter Rahul Kulkarni in connection with the chaos that ensued at Bandra in suburban Mumbai on April 14.
“The Press Club denounces the arrest and considers it as a serious infringement on the right of freedom of speech and this is nothing but an attack on the freedom of press, it said in a statement on April 19.
Mumbai Press Club appealled to the government of Maharashtra and made a special appeal to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray to withdraw the case against the reporter.
Rahul Kulkarni reported on the possibility of the railways starting a few trains based on verified internal communications of the railways department. This was before the PM announced the extension of lockdown.
To hold a reporter responsible for something the railways should have clarified, smacks of trying to shift the blame by the state government for its own intelligence failure about the mass protest.
At this time of crisis, journalists are risking their lives and just like the other frontline workers including doctors, healthcare officials, and police force are working rigorously to get information to the masses.
Such arrests without a detailed investigation is an attempt to discourage the media from covering the pandemic fairly.
“We request the government to value journalists and their work too. The Mumbai Press Club emphasizes that the state government should withdraw the case against Rahul Kulkarni and ABP Majha,” the statement said.
