New Delhi: In a continuation of a series of attacks on journalists, while Hindi television channel News24 journalist Amit Sharma was covering the derailment of a goods train near Shamli on Tuesday night, he was allegedly dragged to the GRP police station and stripped and harassed, reports said.
Two railway policemen – inspector Rakesh Kumar and constable Sanjay Pawar – have been suspended over the incident by GRP Superintendent of Police, Moradabad, Subhash Chandra Dubey . He has also sought a detailed report within 24 hours.
Director General of Uttar Pradesh Police O.P. Singh also ordered that Rakesh Kumar, the GRP’s Shamli Station House Officer, and constable Sanjay Pawar be suspended, the state police tweeted Wednesday morning.
In a video of the incident which went viral on social media late last night, the accused GRP personnel, dressed in plain clothes, can be seen repeatedly slapping and punching Sharma. Subsequently, the GRP personnel detained him.
Sharma later released a video, narrating the incident, PTI reported. “GRP and railway officials were at the spot when I had gone for the coverage. The GRP personnel along with other cops beat me up. The mobile phone, which I used for shooting the news clip is missing. They also hurled abuses at me,”he said.
“I was put in lock up. They forced me to take off my clothes, and then they urinated on me.”
“The incident took place when the journalist had gone to cover the derailment of a few bogies of a goods trains in Shamli. There was a heated exchange of words among them and hurling of abuses,” said Ram Lakhan Mishra, the Circle Officer, GRP, Saharanpur. Mishra denied the allegations levelled by the journalist.
Journalist Piyush Rai shared videos of Sharma in jail.
The attack on Sharma comes exactly a day after the Supreme Court ordered the release of journalist Prashant Kanojia who was arrested for Twitter posts about UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath.
The train accident took place near Dhimanpura in Shamli when two wagons of a goods train derailed around Tuesday. There were no casualties.
Many took to social media to condemn the incident, including senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal.
(With inputs from PTI)