Journalism is not a crime but silencing journalists is certainly a crime against democracy – PCI

The Press Club of India strongly protests the police action against Navbharat Times
journalist Poonam Pandey who was detained on Monday evening for covering a
demonstration near Kartavya Path.

In a statement issued today by President Gautam Lahiri and secretary general Neeraj Thakur – the PCI management, on behalf of the journalistic fraternity, also demands disciplinary action against personnel involved and strictures to security personnel to pre-empt any instances of high-handedness against journalists in the future.

According to the PCI, Pandey, who was returning from South Block to her office, had stopped en route to cover a
demonstration by Mahila Congress workers demanding women’s reservation.

However, she was physically prevented by police personnel controlling the demonstrators from filming the protests and later rounded up along with the demonstrators despite proving her identity as a journalist and showing her Identity card.

Journalism is not a crime but silencing journalists is certainly a crime against democracy said the statement.

The statement said : By intimidating and detaining a woman journalist from carrying out her duties and rounding her up using physical force, the security personnel in question have committed an act that can have a chilling effect. It is no mere coincidence that this happened a stone’s throw away from the seat of power and the Parliament House. The act smacks of an attitude towards a free press characteristic of the current administration said the statement.

The Press club management demands an independent judicial inquiry to determine whether security personnel have been instructed to target and intimate journalists covering events that might cause discomfort to those in power.

The NBT journalist who was detained had revealed the incident on her social media handle X on Mionday writing in Hindi : Today, while covering the protest @MahilaCongress the police detained me along with the protesters. Despite repeatedly telling me that I am from the media and despite showing my media ID card… The policemen were stopping me from making the video.