Journalists and activists of the State have condemned the arrest of Mojo TV CEO Revathi Pogadadanda in a case pertaining to SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act based on a six-month-old complaint.
The police action on July 12 was decried as an attempt by the State to throttle freedom of the fourth estate, at a round table meeting on Tuesday. Representing the Network of Women in Media, India (NWMI), journalist C. Vanaja recalled another such instance in Mumbai when NWMI’s protests had helped secure her release in a day.
Though five days have passed, there is not much response from journalists’ unions here, except one-line statements, she said, and lamented the collective failure to express dissent. Though the case was scheduled to come for hearing on Tuesday, it did not happen as the police failed to submit case diary, she added.
Social activist Devi attributed the arrest to attempts to encroach media by political bosses. V.Sandhya from the Progressive Organisation of Women said such an incident is unfortunate in Telangana, the land known for its revolutionary spirit.
General Secretary of the Telangana Union of Working Journalists Virahat Ali and Indian Journalists Union’s Secretary Narender Reddy expressed their solidarity with Ms. Revathi.