New Delhi: Journalists in Punjab’s Sangrur have accused the police’s intelligence wing of “snooping” after several media persons received calls from the Crime Investigation Department (CID) seeking their personal and professional details.
According to the Times of India, the intelligence wing of the Punjab police has started “profiling” journalists and journalists working for local and English print and electronic media organisations have received these calls from the CID.
The report said that officials asked the journalists for their names, the organisation they work for and other personal details.
Journalists told the newspaper that the arrest of a few unaccredited reporters for alleged blackmail is being used as cover by the CID to profile all media persons. The arrested persons were not registered with the government and used social media platforms, according to reports.
On Friday, in a memorandum submitted to the Punjab chief minister via the deputy commissioner, a group of journalists called the intelligence wing’s actions as “snooping and a direct attack on the fourth pillar of democracy, freedom and privacy of journalists”, according to TOI. They requested chief minister Bhagwant Singh Mann to direct the CID to stop collecting personal details.
The report said that the CID asked journalists for their permanent and present addresses, their current and previous employers and identification (ID) cards issued by the state government. “A CID official called me on my phone and asked for details, including my media organisation and ID card number, on the grounds of verification. Some local journalists allegedly involved in blackmailing activities were arrested recently. By making this as a ground, the police and the establishment want to intimidate genuine journalists too by calling them for verification,” a Sangrur-based journalist told TOI.
According to the Times of India, neither the district public relations department, nor the senior superintendent of police and deputy commissioner claimed to have been unaware about the intelligence wing’s actions.
A senior officer in the public relations department told the newspaper that if the intelligence wing requests details like names of journalists through an official letter, it shares this information. However, details like Aadhaar card, residential address and bank accounts are not shared with any third parties, the officer said.