Punjab Assembly Press Committee complains about “illegal detention” of journalists by Delhi Police

Chandigarh: The Press Gallery Committee of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha has sent a letter to the Chief Election Commissioner protesting the Delhi Police‘s alleged imprisonment of journalists in the nation’s capital.

The committee alleged malpractice on the part of the Delhi Police in their letter.

“Media personnel from Punjab are regularly sent to cover elections in other states so that election-related information can reach the people of Punjab,” added the statement.

“The Election Unit officially covered the Delhi elections with around twenty Punjabi journalists. Journalists in Delhi told us that they had discovered on Saturday that some individuals were trying to tamper with the election process by providing things such as alcohol. Workers from political parties mistreated these journalists when they started covering this unlawful conduct. The journalists responded by requesting assistance from the Delhi Police in the hopes of receiving protection. But rather than offering support, the Delhi Police harassed the journalists,” the Committee informed the CEC.

They said that five journalists, including a well-known journalist who is a member of the Punjab Assembly Press Gallery Committee, were unlawfully arrested by the Delhi Police and held overnight at the Tughlaq Police Station.

The Delhi Police’s activities were also denounced by the Punjab Assembly Press Gallery Committee.

“The Punjab Assembly Press Gallery Committee is condemning this event and has criticized the acts of the Tughlaq Police Station. We ask that the proper steps be followed in this case and that the Delhi Police be instructed to make sure that such inappropriate behavior doesn’t happen again. According to the committee’s letter, “action should also be taken against the police officers and employees involved in the misconduct and illegal detention of the journalists.”

Prior to the Delhi Assembly Elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Aam Aadmi Party clashed after the ‘raid’ at Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s home in the capital city of Kapurthala.

The Election Commission of India’s New Delhi district section said that the action was done in response to a report of “money distribution” that was received on the cVIGIL app, while the AAP questioned the action at CM Mann’s house and asserted that no action was being taken against BJP officials.

The Delhi Assembly elections will be held in one phase on February 5 and the vote count is set for February 8. The BJP, Congress, and AAP are expected to compete in a triangular struggle in the nation’s capital.