NHRC registers case over detention of journalist
Source: Chronicle News Service

Imphal, January 05 2023: The Human Rights Defenders' (HRD) Alert, India has submitted an appeal to the National Human Rights Commission seeking urgent intervention over the issue of "harassment, illegal house search, and arbitrary detention of senior journalist Hemantakumar Ningombam, editor of Sanaleibak daily, by police personnel of Imphal East district for expressing his opinion on TV on the state government's anti-drug policy".

Consequently, NHRC has registered a case in this regard.

In the appeal, HRD Alert national working secretary Henri Tiphagne stated that on January 4 around 7:30 am, three vehicles of Manipur Police personnel led by the 2nd OC of Irilbung Police Station went to the residence of Hemantakumar.

The police entered and searched all the rooms, including that of the ladies, looking for Hemantakumar.

Later, the security personnel took him to Irilbung PS and detained him there.

Hemantakumar went to the police station in his own vehicle with one police man.

SP Imphal East M Pradip and IGP Themthing Ngasangva came to meet the editor at the police station where he was detained for around 4 hours before being released.

The reason for the detention as given by the police was for expressing his opinion on War on Drugs in relation to the poppy cartel during the ISTV (local cable TV network) discussion programme, HRD Alert said in its appeal.

"We believe that the illegal house search and detention of a senior journalist for expressing his opinion on TV is a shocking act of curtailment of the Right to Freedom of Expression", it stated.

Constitution gives journalists the right to exercise freedom of speech and expression under Article 19 (a) of the Indian Constitution, which is crucial to the work of journalists.

The right to freedom of expression encompasses three different aspects: 1) the right to hold opinions without interference; 2) the right of access to information; and 3) the right to impart information and ideas of all kind.

The UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders 1998 seeks to protect the monitoring and advocacy functions of defenders by recognising their right to obtain and disseminate information relevant to the enjoyment of human rights.

If journalists are muffled up their reporting on facts when they criticise politicians and public officials, seldom will they dare to take a stand and the fourth pillar of democracy will be crushed further.

The protection of journalists and human rights defenders, and ending impunity for attacks against them, is a priority for safeguarding freedom of expression.

States are under an obligation to prevent, protect against, and prosecute attacks against journalists and human rights defenders.

A free press and active civil society are essential to ensure the public's right to know so that governments and institutions can be held accountable.

This is not the first time security personnel arrested and detained journalists in the state for expressing his/her opinion against the government.

Earlier, there have been numerous cases where many journalists have been arrested and booked under the National Security Act on frivolous charges.

However, in the present case, it is for suggesting to the government how to effectively conduct its War on Drugs.

"We firmly believe that the act of subjecting a senior journalist to a search without any search memo and then subjecting him to harassment by detaining in a police station are acts of political reprisal to suppress any dissent against government policy of the war on drugs.

Hemantakumar also said that the police could have called him in good faith rather than the heavy-handed approach where he was publicly humiliated in front of the locality as if he is a criminal.

A house search needs a prior notice or search warrant which was not given by the police," the appeal stated.

It then appealed to the NHRC to treat this as a case of reprisal against a journalist and human rights defender for exercising his constitutionally guaranteed fundamental rights, and urged the NHRC to urgently direct the Director General of Police (DGP) of Manipur to initiate an immediate, independent, thorough, transparent, effective and impartial investigation into the arbitrary detention of journalist and submit a report to the NHRC within two weeks.

It also appealed for issuing direction to the authority concerned for providing security to Hemantakumar Ningombam as he stands at further risk of reprisals and to submit a report to the NHRC within two weeks.

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