PRASANTA PATNAIK’S CLARION CALL FOR UNITED ACTION BY THE JOURNALISTS
Eminent Journalist Prasanta Patnaik has given a clarion call to journalists of Orissa to start united action against miscreants that play havoc with Freedom of Press.
He writes thus:
While our journalist friend from Mohana, Laxman Chaudhury is languishing in jail because of a conspiracy hatched by some unscrupulous policemen who have branded him as an associate of Naxals, another journalist friend Jagannath Bastia of Puri, representing oddest Oriya daily Samaj, has become a victim of severe assault by anti-socials for exposing the Soddy deals of land grabbers and politicians in Puri. Bastia was also a well known environmentalist who was fighting since last few years to save the environment of Holy City of Puri and its world famous golden beach.
Earlier two scribes Sriharsha Mishra and Kiran Mishra , representing AAROMBH daily published from Bhubaneswar were subjected to atrocious behaviour of Collector, Jharsuguda while collecting information about death of farmers. Sriharsha was injured when the employees of the Collectorate used force to physically throw him out from the Collector’s chamber on receiving instructions from the Collector. Though a FIR was filed with Jharsuguda police against the Collector by aggrieved Mr Mishra, the police preferred to keep quiet. Moreover the matter was also reported in AAROMV elaborately, but failed to evoke no response from the Government, newspaper editors and journalist organisation.
Such dangerous trend of attack on journalists by the police, administrative officers, politicians and anti-socials has certainly posed a serious threat to our profession as well as to the lives and properties of journalists who are trying to expose the anti-people activities of officials, politicians and vested interests.
I personally feel that such attack on media and media persons would increase day by day if we will not give an united fight against such vested interests involved in anti-people activities and working against the interests of the State and the country to achieve their personal goals.
I would therefore request all the media persons, people who believe in free and independent media and prosperity of the State to join hands together to fight against such heinous forces in all spheres.
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Expecting your valued suggestions at the earliest and thanking you,
Prasanta Patnaik,
5RF/5, UNIT-3, M.G. MARG,
BHUBANESWAR-751001.
e-mail: patnaikprasanta@gmail.com