11 arrested for attacking journalists during third phase of panchayat polls in Odisha

At least 11 persons, including five women have been arrested for their alleged involvement in attacking journalists during the third phase of polling for the three-tier panchayat elections in Odisha, police said.

Three journalists – Debashis Sahoo, Gulshan Ali Nawaz and Bijay Sahoo – while covering alleged rigging during the panchayat election in Binjharpur area of Jajpur district on Sunday, were beaten up by the offenders.

Around 40 miscreants had allegedly attacked the journalists. They had also damaged the vehicles of the scribes. Police had rescued the trio and admitted them to the district headquarters hospital.

The police have registered three separate cases and picked up 25 people, including 10 women, for questioning.

When a delegation of journalists met State Election Commissioner, A P Padhi, he too condemned the incident and asked the DGP, Odisha to take stringent action against the culprits.

”Investigation is going on in case of the attack on journalists. All persons involved in the case will be arrested soon and strict legal action will be initiated,” Jajpur SP Rahul PR said.

A local journalist in Odisha’s Kalahandi district was killed in an IED explosion suspected to have been planted by the Maoists in the run up the panchayat elections on February 5.

Earlier during the first phase of polling for the panchayat elections, miscreants had also attacked journalists in Puri and Nayagarh districts.

In another incident, a group of people at Santragadia village in Balasore district on Monday intercepted a police van and freed a youth who was arrested on charges of attacking a web journalist during the third phase panchayat polls on Sunday.

The villagers took away the accused from police custody using force, police said, adding that a case was registered based on the FIR lodged by journalist Lelin Kumar Dey on Sunday.

A report from Kendrapara district said that the police have arrested two persons including a Sarpanch candidate on Monday on the charge of assaulting a policeman during the third phase of panchayat polling on Sunday.

Krushna Chandra Behera, the Sarpanch candidate of Dera Gram Panchayat and one Panchanana Rout were arrested on the charges of assaulting a police officer on Sunday at booth number-3 at Gokhani village under Dera Panchayat under Rajnagar block of Kendrapara district.

In another poll related violence, police on Monday arrested five miscreants on the charge of assaulting three persons at Bangalapur village under Patkura police station in Kendrapara district.