Gurugram schoolboy murder: IWPC condemns police action against mediapersons

NEW DELHI: The Indian Women's Press Corps (

IWPC

) has strongly condemned the assault on journalists during police action against an agitating mob outside Ryan International School in Gurugram on Sunday.

Over a dozen journalists were wounded and their equipment damaged when police resorted to lathicharge to bring under control the angry crowd of parents and locals who set ablaze a liqour vend to vent their ire against the negligence of school authorities.

"The IWPC condemns in unequivocal terms the assault on journalists by members of the Haryana police in Gurugram. The unprovoked lathi charge happened as journalists were covering the protests against the brutal murder of a seven year old school boy in the premises of a Gurugram based school. More than a dozen journalists have been injured due to the police action," IWPC president Shobna Jain said in a statement on Monday.

The IWPC alleged that the police had deliberately used excessive force to discourage the mediapersons from carrying out their duties at the scene of the protest.

"It is shocking that not only media persons were prevented from conducting their duties but they were grievously assaulted and media equipment damaged. This is the second occasion in recent times that journalists have been attacked in Haryana," it said.

The other incident was referring to the violence which broke out in Sirsa and other parts of Haryana after the conviction of Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in a rape case. Mediapersons were roughed up by Dera supporters and security personnel then too.

The IWPC urged the government to inquire into the incident and recommend suitable action against the high-handedness of the police. It also demanded that the journalists be recompensed for their injuries and damaged equipment.