Naveen Soorinje, a reporter with the Kannada channel Kasturi TV, was arrested on Wednesday night in connection with the assault on college students in the "˜Morning Mist"™ boarding home in Padil here on July 28.
Mr. Soorinje, who was charge sheeted after he filmed the incident, was arrested by the Mangalore Rural police in Padil around 9.30 p.m. while he and other television reporters were returning to the city after covering a public programme in Kukke Subrahmanya.
He has been remanded in judicial custody till November 20 and sent to Mangalore City sub-jail.
With his arrest, the number of people arrested in connection with the assault has gone up to 29.
After the assault by right-wing Hindutva activists on college students celebrating a birthday party at "˜Morning Mist"™, Mr. Soorinje and Sharan, from Sahaya TV , were booked under provisions of the Indian Penal Code for failing to alert the police while the assault was on.
Mangalore City Police Commissioner Manish Karbikar, who took charge three months after the incident, said the police were merely executing a court warrant.
Meanwhile, the Delhi Union of Journalists issued the following statement condemning the arrest:
The Delhi Union of Journalists (DUJ) condemns the arrest of Mangalore journalist Naveen Soorinje. The journalist of Kasturi TV has been arrested for covering an attack by a Hindutva group on revellers at a party.
Forty three members of the Hindu Jagarana Vedike were arrested for rioting and attacking women at the party. They were identified primarily from the footage of Kasturi TV (Kannada). Ironically, Soorinje, whose reporting led to these arrests, has himself been slapped with the same charges of rioting, criminal trespass, assault on women and a plethora of other charges.
We demand the immediate release of Naveen Soorinje and a probe by the CBI inquiry into the entire episode. The DUJ calls upon the Press Council of India to immediately initiate action into the matter. The DUJ is also bringing the matter to the notice of the International Federation of Journalists.
The DUJ calls upon the journalists throughout the country to protest against attempts to muzzle the press and to uphold the freedom of the media and its right to cover news events without victimisation by the police and other authorities.