Case against Asianet News reporter: KUWJ takes out protest march to Kochi Commissioner’s office as row intensifies
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Kochi: The Kerala Union of Working Journalists (KUWJ) on Monday, June 12 organised a protest march against the booking of senior journalist Akhila Nandakumar in a complaint filed by Students’ Federation of India (SFI) leader PM Arsho.
Several journalists took part in the march from the Press Club to the office of the Commissioner of Police in Kochi. Akhila’s inclusion in the list of accused has invited widespread protests.
MR Harikumar, president of the Ernakulam Press Club, KUWJ president MV Vineetha, general secretary Kiran Babu, and trade union leader Thampan Thomas were among those present.
Akhila, chief reporter with the Malayalam news channel Asianet News, is the fifth accused in a case filed on the basis of a complaint by Arsho to the state police chief Anil Kant. The case was registered on Saturday.
Akhila, in her news report, had alleged that Arsho, an MA Archaeology student at Maharaja’s College Ernakulam, had passed all his exams without appearing for them.
The controversy erupted after it was found that Arsho had cleared his third-semester examinations even though his mark list showed that he had not written any of the papers. Arsho had alleged conspiracy in the controversy surrounding the results, revealing that he was not present in Ernakulam when the examinations were conducted.
“I wasn’t in Ernakulam when the exams were conducted. I did not have permission to enter the district because of the case against me,” he told Manorama News.
This sparked protests, with opposing student groups accusing the SFI (student wing of the Communist Party of India (Marxist)) of helping Arsho using their influence to clear the examinations.
When the Kerala Students Union (KSU), the students’ outfit of the Congress protested outside the college principal’s office demanding a clarification on the issue, principal VS Joy, reportedly said that it was a technical glitch and that the college would rectify it. The college also withdrew the third semester examination results from their website.
Akhila was at the college for another story when a Kerala Students Union (KSU, student wing of the Congress) leader made allegations against Arsho on her live.
Kiran Babu said that it is only natural that a journalist who is reporting on an allegation against a political organisation in a college would speak to opposing political groups.
“Akhila reported the reactions of the KSU leaders with utmost caution. She stated that it was an allegation raised by the KSU, and not that PM Arsho forged a certificate. Political parties often raise allegations of corruption and other issues through press conferences or through quotes given to individual journalists,” he said.
Addressing the protesting journalists, Thampan Thomas said, “Media is considered the fourth pillar in preserving and ensuring democracy and freedom in a country. Independent and unbiased journalism is what sustains democracy in India. All the citizens of this country will come forward to question any voice that opposes it. No section of people can take steps to single out journalists and target them for political reasons. No matter who takes such steps, other journalists, workers, farmers, and others will stand with you.”
Besides Akhila, Maharaja’s College Principal VS Joy, Archaeology Department head Dr Vinod Kumar, KSU state president Aloysious Xavier, and KSU Maharaja’s unit president Fazil are the other four accused in the case.
They have been booked under sections 120B (criminal conspiracy), 465 (forgery), 469 (forgery for harming reputation), and 500 (defamation) of the Indian Penal Code.
Arsho is one of the accused in the murder of advocate Nizam Nassar at his house in Erattupetta in November 2018. He is also accused in several other criminal cases, including assaulting a student and making casteist remarks on an AISF woman leader.
The controversy comes less than a month after an SFI leader was suspended from the student’s outfit after reports that his name was fraudulently recommended to the post of University Union Chancellor (UUC), replacing the originally elected candidate of the Kattakada Christian College in Thiruvananthapuram.
Meanwhile, the SFI Kerala state committee has put out a statement accusing the media of spreading false news regarding the issue.
“Everybody here knows that a person who has scored zero in exams will not be able to pass the examinations. Also, the exam results in Maharaja’s College are published by the National Information Centre (NIC) of the Union government. Despite the fact that the college principal clarified that it was a technical glitch from the NIC’s side, the media has not made any effort to report the matter correctly,” said the SFI statement reported The News Minute.
