February 5, 2021 |
New Delhi: Eight journalists who covered the farmer protests in India and violence in Delhi on January 26, 2021 are facing baseless criminal charges, Human Rights Watch said in a statement on February 2. The Indian authorities should drop the charges, which include sedition, promoting communal disharmony, and making statements prejudicial to national integration.
“The Indian authorities’ response to protests has focused on discrediting peaceful protesters, harassing critics of the government, and prosecuting those reporting on the events,” said Meenakshi Ganguly, South Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “The government instead should conduct a transparent and impartial investigation into the January 26 violence in Delhi.”