Date:28/11/2007 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2007/11/28/stories/2007112862850500.htm

Andhra Pradesh

APUWJ panel’s concern over attacks on scribes

HYDERBAD: The Andhra Pradesh Union of Working Journalists (APUWJ) sub-committee to look into attacks on journalists has expressed serious concern over the increasing attacks on journalists in the State.

Government inaction

The committee at a meeting on Tuesday felt that the inaction of the government had led to political leaders, anti-social elements targeting the journalists if news not palatable to them appeared in the media. It pointed out that in the last six months, 40 print and electronic media personnel had been attacked.

The APUWJ general secretary Y. Narender Reddy said the government’s administrative machinery was also becoming overactive and filing cases and getting journalists arrested and cited the case of two scribes, who were picked up and jailed in Kurnool. The committee wanted State and district-level high power committees to look into such attacks.