Supreme Court refuses interim protection to Madhya Pradesh journalists who alleged police assault

The Supreme Court on Wednesday refused to pass any interim order granting protection from arrest to two journalists from Madhya Pradesh who alleged custodial violence, caste-based abuse and ongoing threat to life from Bhind Police, Bar and Bench reported.

Amarkant Singh Chauhan of Swaraj Express and Shashikant Jatav of Dainik Bejor Ratna had approached the court alleging that they were kidnapped on May 1, assaulted in custody and subjected to casteist slurs by Superintendent of Police Asit Yadav and his colleague at a police station in Bhind, the legal news outlet reported.

The journalists alleged that they were targeted for exposing corruption through their reports, The Indian Express reported.

In their writ petition, Chauhan and Jatav sought a direction from the Supreme Court to the Madhya Pradesh Police against taking any coercive action against them, the newspaper reported.

The bench of Justices Sanjay Karol and Satish Chandra Sharma said that the court could not issue an interim order protecting the two journalists from arrest without being informed of the exact nature of the allegations against them, Bar and Bench reported.

“Suppose you commit a crime like murder, can we grant you no coercive protection order?” Justice Sharma said. “We have to know what kind of crime police is alleging.”

The court, however, assured the petitioners that it will come to their rescue if there is a...

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