Kolkata: Late Monday evening, while on air, Republic TV Bangla correspondent Santu Pan was arrested from Sandeshkhali. “A journalist is being arrested for being the voice of the mothers of Sandeshkali, a journalist is being arrested,” Santu Pan was heard saying on camera before being taken to Basirhat Police Station by Rapid Action Force (RAF) personnel.
Speaking to the media, Superintendent of Police (SP), Basirhat, Dr Hossain Mehedi Rehman IPS, said, “We received a complaint this afternoon that a woman was shouting that when she was not properly dressed and eating, two employees of R Bangla barged into the house and started recording. Based on the complaint, we have arrested one person.”
On Tuesday the scribe was produced before the Basirhat district Court. He has been charged under the Indian Penal Code’s (IPC) sections 447 (criminal trespass), 448 (house trespass), 354 (outraging modesty of a woman), 354C (any man who watches or captures a woman engaging in a private act), 509 (insulting modesty of a woman), 506 (criminal intimidation).
The police had sought 10 days custody of the TV reporter. The court has granted three days.
Speaking to ThePrint, Republic Bangla Senior Editor Mayukh Ranjan Ghosh said, “Santu Pan is not a criminal, he is a media person on ground and the way this was done was utterly shocking. He is not just a reporter, he is also an anchor, and we have been questioning the state government about Sandeshkhali and that’s why they are attempting to silence us. We will intensify our coverage.”
Shortly after the arrest, The Kolkata Press Club issued a statement condemning the arrest, seeking his release and a fair probe into the case.
The Kolkata Press Club president Snehasis Sur told ThePrint, “We are highly concerned. This is the second such incident in recent times. The Press Club’s intervention ensured journalist Debmalya Bagchi walked free. We are keeping a close eye on the developments of this case.”
Following Pan’s arrest, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) had Tuesday issued a press release taking suo motu cognizance of a complaint filed by the wife of the arrested journalist. While seeking a report within two weeks from the director general of police (DGP), West Bengal, and one from deputy inspector general (investigation) within one week. The Editors Guild of India has also sought Pan’s immediate release.
Issuing the notice, the NHRC also noted the observation of the Supreme Court in a recent case — “An independent press is vital for the robust functioning of a democratic republic. Its role in a democratic society is crucial for it shines a light on the functioning of the State. The press has a duty to speak truth to power, and present citizens with hard facts enabling them to make choices that propel democracy in the right direction. The restriction on the freedom of the press compels citizens to think along the same tangent. A homogenised view on issues that range from socio-economic policy to political ideologies would pose grave dangers to democracy.”
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Past incidents
In September last year, Debmalya Bagchi, a correspondent of Anandabazar Patrika (ABP) in West Medinipur was arrested on the charges of assaulting a neighbour, a Dalit woman, under the stringent Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, which doesn’t require an arrest warrant to take the accused person in custody.
Bagchi’s arrest had come close on the heels of his investigative report on the illegal liquor production in Kharagpur. Sources say it was after the intervention of the Chief Minister with the district superintendent of police that the journalist was granted bail.
Before that, in January 2023, Kolkata Police had registered an FIR against 10 journalists and the BJP state president Dr Sukanta Majumdar for their tweets on reports of “stone pelting” on Vande Bharat Express. While the tweets carried statements from the Eastern Railway, the journalists were served notice to appear before the investigating officer to record statements.
In 2017, two Times Now journalists were served notices of appearance under Section 41A of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) after the channel aired a sting operation against a firm owned by Mamata’s nephew Abhishek Banerjee.
To mark its protest against the arrest of the journalist, West Bengal BJP MLA Suvendu Adhikari observed a “black day” by wearing a black badge and turning his X handle picture black.
(Edited by Zinnia Ray Chaudhuri)
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