Foreign Correspondents’ Club election postponed after clash lands candidate in hospital. FIR lodged

This follows months of internal strife that began in October, when an emergency meeting led to the ousting of club president, vice-president and general secretary.

FCC Delhi, election candidate Munish Gupta in hospital | X: @FCCNewDelhi/@DeepakDwivedi_

New Delhi: The Foreign Correspondents’ Club (FCC) in New Delhi has indefinitely postponed its Annual General Meeting (AGM) and elections after a violent altercation between two candidates late Friday. Police were called to the spot, and one of the candidates were admitted in hospital with possible internal injuries.

According to New Delhi Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Devesh Kumar Mahla, a PCR call was received at around 11 pm Friday about an incident at the FCC. The altercation happened between FCC presidential candidate Munish Gupta and another member, Pankaj Yadav, and his associates. 

Gupta told the police that he was verbally abused, slapped, and threatened by Yadav. “A medical examination of Gupta was conducted and an FIR under sections 115(2), 126(2), 351(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita was registered against Yadav on Gupta’s complaint. During investigation, Pankaj Yadav was confronted, interrogated and bound down in the case. Investigation is underway,” the DCP said.

Deepak Dwivedi, Editor-in-Chief of Blitz India Media Group, wrote in a post on X: “The assault was life-threatening. Delhi Police responded swiftly, and we expect a thorough investigation.” He also shared two videos in which Yadav was seen verbally abusing Gupta and later calling the police.

Last night, during the ongoing elections for the @FCCNewDelhi President of the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of South Asia, senior journalist and presidential candidate @moviegupta Munish Gupta was brutally attacked by self-proclaimed journalist and so called advocate Pankaj Yadav… pic.twitter.com/3O5KReWpKZ

— Deepak Dwivedi (@DeepakDwivedi_) March 29, 2025

Speaking to ThePrint, Dwivedi, an eyewitness, recounted that the incident occurred during an unofficial gathering ahead of the elections. He alleged that after a peaceful discussion among senior journalists, Yadav brought in outsiders who were not part of the FCC. “They looked like goons. As soon as Munish and I stepped out, they attacked him. I tried to intervene, but I wasn’t allowed to speak.”

He further alleged that Yadav misled the police, claiming that Gupta was intoxicated and had been abusive. Meanwhile, FCC’s security cameras and gates were reportedly shut off. “Munish was hospitalised overnight due to severe injuries,” Dwivedi added.

ThePrint reached both Yadav and Gupta for comments. This report will be updated if and when their responses are received.

The latest incident follows months of internal strife that began in October, when an emergency meeting led to the ousting of club president S. Venkat Narayan, vice president Waiel Awwad, and general secretary Prakash Nanda. Shortly after, interim president Simran Sodhi and general secretary Sanjay Kumar were also expelled by the governing council, deepening divisions within the club.

Deepening power struggle 

The FCC, an association of over 500 journalists covering South Asia, was finally set to elect a new governing body, including a president, general secretary, treasurer, and eight-member governing council. Fourteen candidates, including Yadav and Gupta, were contesting for the council seats.

Venkat Narayan, the current president of the FCC told ThePrint that while he was not physically present when the incident happened, he heard that one of the members called the police and when the police tried checking the CCTV footage, it couldn’t be checked as the “technical person was not on duty at that time”.

“In view of this, we have decided to postpone the AGM as well as the elections. The situation at present is not congenial to hold such elections. Once things cool down and the police investigation gets completed, we are planning to hold the elections,” he said. “Tempers are running really high right now.”

Narayan said that things had been functioning normally in FCC in the last few months and several events have also been held regularly. “The elections were due to be held but one group of people who were aspiring for positions in the governing council and the new body, they and one of the persons who didn’t belong to the group were involved in the activity last night.”

Sanjay Kumar, a former member of the FCC who was expelled back in October, told ThePrint that after the situation that happened in October, no corrective steps were taken but an expelled member, Yadav, was brought back. “He has a violent history. He has been violent against the president and other members. That’s why the previous committee had expelled him for his gross violation of FCC rules,” he alleged.

Kumar said that the club has been “ruined” by Narayan and the current general secretary Prakash Nanda who have brought in “uncivilised and unsocial” people in the club, meant for foreign correspondents. “Now since the police are involved, the elections might have to be postponed altogether,” he said.

 “I believe that this platform is being hijacked by people who are not interested in the well-being of journalists. They just want to capture the club and use it for their own benefits,” he said. “The situation is really worrying.”

(Edited by Radifah Kabir)