In a recent development, a journalist employed with the Bengali news channel Republic Bangla, who had been reporting from the conflict-ridden area of Sandeshkhali in the North 24 Parganas district since tensions erupted there last week, was apprehended by the police late on Monday evening.
While the exact charges against Santu Pan, the detained journalist, have not been disclosed by the state police, sources indicate that he was detained while reporting from Sandeshkhali on Monday evening following a complaint of trespassing filed against him and his cameraman by a local woman.
Basirhat DSP Hossain Mehdi Rehman informed the media that the complainant alleged that the journalist and his cameraman intruded into her residence and began filming without her consent.
Santu Pan is scheduled to appear before a lower court in Basirhat on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, opposition leaders in the state have condemned the ruling Trinamool Congress for the arrest, labeling it as an unprecedented assault on the freedom of the press.
State BJP President Sukanta Majumdar asserted that the arrest demonstrates the state government's desperation to suppress the incidents occurring in Sandeshkhali.
"This is a significant, inhumane, and direct assault on the fourth pillar of democracy," he stated.
State Congress leader and advocate at the Calcutta High Court, Kaustav Bagchi, remarked that it is evident that Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee cannot tolerate any negative coverage or criticism against her government.
"She expects everyone to laud her and her administration. Those who do not comply will face the wrath of the state administration through its law enforcement," Bagchi remarked.
Naushad Siddique, the only AISF representative in the state Assembly, denounced the arrest, stating that such an unprecedented attack on the media is unheard of in West Bengal.
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