Police in Uttar Pradesh’s Kanpur Dehat district have booked three television journalists on charges of airing a “baseless” news report of children of a government school “shivering in cold” in knickers and cotton shirts during a drill at a public function on January 24.
The event was part of a government function held at the Eco Park in Kanpur Dehat on the occasion of U.P. Foundation Day. Minister for Technology Ajit Singh Pal, MLAs and officials were present.
The FIR was lodged at the Akbarpur police station on a complaint of Sunil Dutt, district basic education officer.
Mr. Dutt accused the three journalists of publishing “baseless and misleading” reports and videos that pupils were made to “shiver in cold” while performing drills and yoga.
The three, working for a local TV channel, have been identified as Mohit Kashyap, Amit Singh and Yaseen Ali.
The three were not even present at the event, officials said. Visuals of the event shows pupils performing drills apparently in summer uniform and holding toy guns. The FIR accused the journalists of projecting that the officials were busy while the children shivered in cold.
In the complainant, Mr. Dutt said the pupils were made to take off their winter-wear only while performing yoga and exercise, and that after that they wore back their warm clothes. Yoga and physical exercise could not be carried out in winter cloth and required loose clothing, he pointed out.
Kanpur Dehat District Magistrate Dinesh Chandra Singh said, “I am pained that some journalists who were not even present here have circulated such information that the pupils were shivering in the cold.”
Be it a child, a young adult or old person, yoga cannot be performed wearing a sweater, coat or pant, he said. “These children have performed well,” Mr. Singh said at the event, promising action against the scribes.