The International
Federation of Journalists (IFJ) condemns the arrest of Tarakant Dwivedi, alias Akela, under India’s
Official Secrets Act, after he reported on poor security conditions in the
Chhatrapati Shivaji Railway Terminus (CST) in India’s western metropolis of
Mumbai.
CST, which is a hub of both suburban
and long-distance railway traffic, was among the first targets to be hit in the
terrorist attack on Mumbai on November 26, 2008. More than a third of the 164
people killed during the three day-long siege of Mumbai perished at this
location.
Soon afterwards, the Government Railway
Police (GRP), which is tasked with maintaining security at all major facilities
of the Indian Railways, procured an array of sophisticated weaponry to deal
with future contingencies involving terrorist attacks.
On June 28, 2010, the daily Mumbai
Mirror newspaper published a report under Akela’s byline, headlined “Leaks
in CST armoury put new anti-terror arms under threat”. The report documented
how newly procured equipment was being stored in a room with a leaky roof,
making their efficacy in an emergency situation highly questionable.
In October, the GRP reportedly filed
a case against Akela on charges of trespass. On May 17, a contingent of the GRP
arrived at the office of the afternoon daily Mid-day, where Akela now
works. He was taken away to the GRP office, ostensibly to record his statement,
but placed under arrest later that night. The next morning, when he was due to
be produced before the local magistrate, the GRP pleaded its inability to do so
owing to the required paperwork not being completed.
Mumbai’s journalists, led by the
Brihan-Mumbai Union of Journalists and the Marathi Patrakar Sangh, have
strongly protested the arbitrary arrest of a reporter who was clearly working
towards bringing vital information to public notice.
On Thursday, a number of Mumbai’s
senior journalists went to meet the Home Minister in the state government of Maharashtra to demand that the case against Akela be
withdrawn. A demonstration involving several hundred journalists later marched
from the local union office to the administrative headquarters of the state
government.
“We extend our solidarity to Akela
and all Mumbai’s journalists in their struggle against this gross violation of
media freedom and the public’s right to be informed of matters concerning their
personal safety,” IFJ Asia-Pacific
Director Jacqueline Park said.
“The IFJ believes that in areas of
heightened security concerns, efforts by official agencies to restrict the flow
of information does little for the cause of public reassurance.”
For further
information contact IFJ Asia-Pacific
on +612 9333 0919
The IFJ
represents more than 600,000 journalists in 131 countries
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