Chief Minister N Biren Singh characterized the fact-finding mission as anti-state, anti-national, and anti-establishment and accused them of attempting to incite conflict. The three journalists and the guild president were the subjects of a FIR filed by the Manipur Police.
Source: Deccan Chronicle
They are accused of encouraging hostility, stirring up religious sentiment, making statements that encourage public harm, and engaging in criminal conspiracy. Defamation was a separate charge in a second FIR. The three are now protected until September 15 from any coercive action by the Supreme Court.
Rebuttal of the results is expected, but using forceful methods is not. It creates a risky precedent. The FIRs must be dismissed in the name of justice, press freedom, and ethical journalism.
The argument that it’s a matter of killing the messenger has some merit. Intimidating a leading media organization is equivalent to suppressing the truth at a time when Manipur needs actions that can help restore peace.
Source: Live Law
The Chief Justice of India’s spoken remark on whether the release of a group of journalists’ subjective analysis might be a basis for the filing of a FIR inspires hope.According to the Editors Guild, the Army sent out a warning and requested a ‘independent evaluation’ to see whether journalistic standards were being broken. Manipur is scarred as a result of the ethnic conflicts. There is a considerable likelihood that prejudice will affect reporting in such situations. An organization like the Editors Guild can help in this situation. Let it finish its task.
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