The Indian Journalists’ Union (IJU) has condemned the Attorney General K.K. Venugopal’s threat of invoking the “archaic and draconian” Official Secrets Act against The Hindu for publishing an exposé on Rafale deal allegedly based on stolen documents. In a statement issued here on Friday, IJU president and member of Press Council of India (PCI) Amar Devulapalli and Secretary General Sabina Inderjit said the Attorney General’s warning in the Supreme Court was intended to browbeat the media and working journalists from bringing out the truth.
“We are appalled to note that such a statement came from the top-most law officer in the country before a Bench of the Supreme Court headed by the Chief Justice of India. It’s a frontal attack on the freedom of the press and freedom of expression. We demand that the Attorney General retract his statement and respect the fundamental rights enshrined in the Constitution, which he was sworn to protect, “ the IJU leaders said. The IJU welcomed N. Ram’s statement that no power on earth could force him and The Hindu to disclose his source. “We congratulate Mr. Ram and The Hindu for upholding the traditions of independent ethical journalism. The IJU pledges to stand by them and extend support in their endeavours to be the voice of the people,” Mr. Amar and Ms. Sabina said.
