DUJ Call: Stop Press Bashing In Kerala

THE DUJ held a dharna in front of Kerala House on November 4 condemning the brutal assault on media persons in Kerala in the past few days for the exposure and continued coverage of the 'Ice Cream Parlour Sex Scandal" and the alleged attempts at cover up.

The protesting media persons handed over a memorandum to the Kerala resident commissioner after the dharna. The DUJ demanded that a "judicial enquiry should be ordered into the attacks on the media persons and the culprits brought to book."  Furthermore it demanded that all state governments and newspaper barons should ensure a risk insurance cover for the journalist fraternity in view of increasing attacks. It has called upon media persons through out the country to condemn  these attacks.

Earlier in a joint statement on November 3, DUJ president  S K Pande and general secretary,  Javed Faridi expressed solidarity with the Kerala journalists facing this brutal assault on their freedom of expression. They cautioned all state governments against press bashing visible increasingly in the past few years.

It may be recalled that journalists in Kerala were being attacked by supporters of the Muslim League for the last three days because of their role in bringing to light the sexual harassment incident allegedly involving the industries minister P Kunhalikutty. 

Meanwhile, the DUJ has sent a telegram to the Kerala CM, Oomen Chandy asking for his immediate intervention and dialogue with the KUWJ to prevent such attacks in the future and to punish the guilty. (INN)