The Assam Police arrested television journalist Jaikhlong Brahma, who works for a Guwahati-based private news channel News Live, in Kokrajhar town on Tuesday night on charges of"providing information to the extremists about the movement of security forces in advance and instigating the cadres of the National Democratic Front of Boroland (Songbijit) to indulge in violent activities such as killing of innocent persons, sources or informers.
The journalist was produced in the Court of Chief Judicial Magistrate, Kokrajhar on Wednesday afternoon. The police sought his custody for 14 days. However, the court remanded him to five days in police custody.
Assam Police spokesman and Deputy Inspector-General of Police Apurba Jibon Barua told The Hindu that the arrested journalist was"found to be instigating miscreants to burn the vehicles on National Highways to create fear psychosis among the masses."
He said the police had recovered evidences against the journalist, whom the police accused of"voluntarily promoting and knowingly facilitating the violent acts of the banned outfit and compromising national security. "
Journalists union condemns arrest, says charges false
Journalists Union of Assam(JUA) condemns the arrest of Jaikhlong Brahma , Kokrajhar correspondent of NewsLive TV Channel on August 2, 2014. The allegations of police against Mr Brahma that he is helping the NDFB (Sangbijit) group, a Bodo ultra organization for long and passing information of movement of police to the ultra group are totally false.
There are tussles between the police and the local journalists for long on the issue of news coverages of the ultra groups. The local journalists cover the incidents of violence, exchanges of fire between rival groups etc taking risk of their life, however the police reaches the place of incidents much later due to its own inefficiency.
The recent killing of Priya Basumatari a class nine student near Runikhata by the NDFB (Sangbijit) in front of her parents and the villagers exposed the hollowness of the police force as the police went to the spot after 24 hours.
Brahma took interview of a leader of the NDFB(Sangbijit) group in presence of the villagers at the spot.
The journalists of Kokrajhar area have doing commandable job for they are disseminating accurate and immediate information of violences , motive and movement of the ultra groups to the people as well as to the security forces.
However the police have failed to control the violences and ultra groups and they are now trying to cover up its failure by accusing and booking journalists.
The police also raided the house of Rinai Rasumatari a correspondent of NewsTime TV Channel and issued arrest warrant against him.
JUA and its parent all India organization Indian Journalists Union (IJU) demand immediate release of Mr Jaikhlong Brahma and urge the government to ensure freedom of media and to uphold its right to not to disclose sources of news.