Scribes come under police attack in Jammu

Jammu, Aug 2 (UNI) Mediapersons today faced the wrath of police at various places in the curfew-hit winter capital of Jammu and Kashmir.

At least seven journalists of various media organisations, who were covering the ongoing unrest in the region, were manhandled and thrashed by the State police personnel at various places in the city, reports said.

The victims of police high-handedness included ZEE News correspondent Raju Kerni, his assistant Manik, their cab driver, a local TV Take 1 cameraman Rajinder Koul, Time TV lensman Ram Kumar, EPA photojournalist Jaipal Singh Bandral, local channel deskman Ravi Shanker.

Policemen thrashed the ZEE News crew, including Mr Kerni, while they were on their way back from the Raj Bhawan, sources said.

Mediapersons also staged protest and demonstrations against the police high-handedness.

Meanwhile, several political and non-political organisations have condemned the attack on the scribes.

In a statement issued here, the All Party Migrant Coordination Committee (APMCC) chairman Vinod Pandit said, ''The attack on the Fourth Estate was the result of frustration of Governor N N Vohra, who has been trying to solve such a volatile situation in a most arrogant style.'' ''Mr Vohra has turned Jammu into Gaza strip discarding all the human rights of the people to crush the ongoing agitation,'' he said, adding the attack on the journalist is an attempt to prevent the local and national media from covering the brutalities.

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