Freelance Journalist Mandeep Punia Sent To 14-Day Judicial Custody

OVERVIEW

• A Delhi court on Sunday rejected the bail plea of journalist Mandeep Punia and sent to a 14-day judicial custody.

• The freelance journalist and contributor for the Caravan magazine was detained on Saturday by the Delhi Police for allegedly misbehaving with an official on duty while covering the farmers’ protest at the Singhu border.

• The metropolitan magistrate court listed his bail application for hearing on Monday, asking the investing officer in the case to file the response.

BACKGROUND

• In the FIR filed against Punia on Sunday, he has been charged under sec. 186 (obstructing public servant in discharge of public functions), 332 (voluntarily causing hurt to deter public servant from his duty), 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty), read with sec. 34 of the IPC .

• The FIR was filed on the grounds of complaint by a Delhi Police official who alleged that Punia was part of a mob of people who attempted to break barricades, manhandle constables on Saturday evening.

• The complaint also alleged that while the group was brought under control by the police using 'minimal force’, Punia continued dragging one of the constables who fell into the nearby drain. Three constables were injured during the tussle, as per the complaint.

• A few hours before the detention, Punia had uploaded a video on Facebook giving a detailed account about the violence at Singhuborder on Friday. The journalist vocalised about the group yelling anti-farmer slogans , claiming to be locals, who were pelting stones at the protest site.

• Akram Khan, Punia’s lawyer told the reporters that the accused was produced before a magistrate inside the Tihar jail to argue for bail.

• In the application for his bail, Punia’s lawyers claimed that 'no information was given to his family members until late last [Saturday] night regarding his detention or possible arrest.’ The application also states that the accused was 'merely carrying out his journalistic duties and another journalist was detained along with him but was released around midnight [on Saturday].’

· His regular bail plea was booked for hearing before the Rohini Courts on February 1, filled out through Advocates SarimNaved, Akram Khan, and Kamran Javed.

ALLEGATIONS IN THE BAIL PLEA

• Punia was detained in the matter on January 30.

• No information was provided to the family members until late night regarding his detention or possible arrest.

• The offences under sec. 186, 332, 353, read with sec. 34 of IPC are not made out against him.

• FIR was registered around 1:21 am, despite him being allegedly part of the scuffle at around 6:40 pm the previous evening.

• Punia was merely carrying out his journalistic duties and another journalist was detained along with him but released around midnight.

• Accused is a freelance journalist and hence he was not carrying a press card, however, it still holds no grounds for his arrest.

CONCLUSION

• The journalist has currently been detained to a 14-day judicial custody and the order to his bail plea is yet to be announced.

WHAT IS YOUR OPINION ON THE DETENTION OF MANDEEP PUNIA? DO YOU THINK OF IT AS AN APPROPRIATE MOVE? LET US KNOW IN THE COMMENT SECTION!