A group of Sangh Parivar activists attacked the Malappuram Press Club here on Thursday and beat up two journalists. Chandrika photographer Fuvad Saneem and news reporter Shahabas Vellila were admitted to hospital with injuries.
The police registered a case against a few Sangh Parivar workers in connection with the attack. The Kerala Union of Working Journalists (KUWJ), the Kerala Newspaper Employees Federation (KNEF), and several political parties demanded stern action against the attackers.
The trigger of the incident was a protest rally taken out by a group under the banner of the Hindu Aikya Vedi against an attack using crackers at the Vedi office at Munduparamba on Wednesday night. Amid the march, the protesters attacked a motorbike rider named Abdulla Fawas, 28. When Mr. Saneem tried to capture the assault on camera, a group of protesters charged at him and chased him into the Press Club, where he was beaten up. Mr. Vellila, who was with him, too was beaten up.
Doctors said Mr. Saneem suffered contusions on his chest, stomach and legs. The motorbike rider was also admitted to hospital with injuries. The attackers snatched the mobile phone of Mr. Saneem. Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) State general secretary K.P.A. Majeed, district general secretary U.A. Latheef, CPI(M) district secretary E.N. Mohandas, and MSF national president T.P. Ashraf Ali visited the injured.
‘Police biased’
Meanwhile, Mr. Saneem and Press Club officials alleged that the police had acted in favour of the RSS men. The hospital, where the victims were admitted, witnessed noisy scenes when two policemen who came to record Mr. Saneem’s statements threatened the caregivers. The policemen returned without recording the statements when journalists protested. Dy.SP Jaleel Thottathil and SI B.S. Binu later arrived at the hospital and recorded the statement.
