Journalist Hem Bhatt writes to NHRC and demands immediate impartial probe to punish the guilty police officials
A vociferous and fearless journalist Hem Bhatt who has the journalistic experience of the past 17 years having worked with several seasoned dailies like Amar Ujala, Dainik Jagran, and electronic channels India News, Samachar Plus, Hindi Khabar etc and picked up for interrogation arbitrarily at 4.00 AM for no fault of his and family harrassed including released after several hours on 23rd May has through a strong letter complained to the chairman of Dehradun Human Rights Commission and demanded a thorough impartial probe to punish the guilty officers and policemen responsible for his undue harrasment to accord him due justice.
The JOURNALIST Hema Bhatt also demanded to fix the accountability over the senior police officers responsible for unconstitutionally picking him up at 4.00 without any legal credible evidence.
He says that not only this but the NHRC should also ensure that in the near future no innocent citizen or a journalist is mentally and physically harrassed – arbitrarily and inhumanly and orders should be issued in this regard to stop such recurrence.
In a one and a half page letter to the NHRC chairman journalist Hem Bhatt has catagorically said that he was picked on 23 May at 4.00 AM from his house without assigning any reason and his wife and son threatened. He was mysteriously taken to various places and despite my asking was not given any satisfactory reply about my being involved in any case except saying that in a case of the culprit being caught in Land Fraud case, his name was mentioned by the culprit which was absolutely fictitious, concocted and biased says Hem Bhatt.
He clarified that when he requested for giving him any credible evidence regarding the allegation, the police did not provide any evidence. This entire action is a serious violation of fundamental rights, personal intimidation, and human dignity guaranteed by Indian Constitution said Bhatt in the letter.
He complained that as a common journalist, my social standing and reputation have been irreparably damaged. Due to this incident, I and my family are going through a state of mental stress, fear, and depression and have to even shift the house to another locality said Hem Bhatt as his reputation in the eyes of the neighbours and residents of the locality has been denigrated.
