Reporter to Ablokit.com, Anish Sheikh was manhandled and barred from reporting in Saptari district on October 14. Saptari lies in Madhesh Province of Nepal.
Reporter Sheikh told Freedom Forum that he had reached Kanchanrup Municipality office to cover the ongoing protest by community school teachers who had not received their salaries. "When I was recording video of the protest, the Mayor- who was arguing with the Deputy Mayor- approached me and asked whether I was a trained journalist. He also asked me to show my training certificate or leave the venue", said Sheikh.
"The Mayor also instructed municipal police officers to seize my mobile phone and delete the recording. Then, they deleted the video recording, grabbed me by the neck and dragged me out of the office", he added.
Sheikh along with a dozen other journalists in Saptari filed a joint complaint at Area Police Office, Kanchanrup, Saptari today (October 15). Reporter Sheikh further informed that Inspector Lekh Bahadur Bista assured them that necessary action would be taken regarding the case.
Freedom Forum is concerned over the incident. A journalist has every right to report on the issues of public concern. Intimidating an on-duty journalist is a sheer violation of press freedom. FF strongly urges the security authorities to conduct fair investigation and ensure safe reporting atosphere for journalists.
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