Amaravati: Journalists Covering BJP Leader’s Protest Attacked By Miscreants

GUNTUR: Journalists who were covering the BJP State president Kanna Lakshmi Narayana's 'Deeksha' in support of the farmers' concerns on the capital issue, were attacked by unidentified people at Uddandarayunipalem in Guntur district on Friday.

As per reports, the BJP leader had begun strike at the place where Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone for the capital at Uddandarayunipalem. Few people who reached the place had attacked the journalists who had come to cover the protest and misbehaved with a female journalist belonging to a media channel. It is reported that they had used abusive language and tried to rough her up. However, she was escorted to safety by other journalists, who were also attacked in the process. Three more journalists were attacked in the incident. It is reported that they had also pelted stones at the journalists who had to flee from the spot.

It is also reported that several policeman were also attacked in the incident, when they had tried to prevent them from attacking the journalists.Several police man were hurt in the incident.

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The miscreants are also said to have attacked a media vehicle and broke the mirrors of the vehicle with sticks and stones, which led to tension in the area. However, the police are under the suspicion that anti-social elements in the guise of protesting farmers have deliberately attacked the media representatives. These attacks are perceived as a larger conspiracy to deliberately disturb the law and order situation in the region.

Meanwhile journalist unions condemned the attack on media representatives. Many journalists have said that they have covered the region many times in the past, but the farmers had never behaved like this. They are under the opinion that it was not the farmers, but miscreants in the guise of farmers who attacked the media representatives.

One journalist who was hurt said that it was clearly the job of outsiders in this attack and that they had chased them even as they tried to escape in autos.Even as the police tried to protect them, they attacked the policeman as well he said. A journalist named Vasanth said that the miscreants had snatched their mobile phones and wallets in the fiasco and also punched them indiscriminately. He said that even as they tried to explain that they were from the media, they paid no heed and continued to rain blows on them.

YSRCP Bapatla MP Nandigama Suresh condemned the attack and demanded that an enquiry be conducted by the police over the attack of ‘outsiders’ on journalists.

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