‘Media has unhindered right to report’, says Jaitley condemning attack on scribes

A police man tries to save a JNU student who was being beaten up during a clash between the advocates and the students outside the Patiala House Courts in New Delhi.

It is pertinent to mention here that on Monday a scuffle broke out in Patiala High Court when the arrested president of Jawaharlal Nehru Students’ Union Kanhaiya Kumar was in the process of being produced in the court. Many lawyers supported me for the stand against anti-nationals.

When asked that a person visiting the court is not safe, he said, the enemies of the country would definitely think hundred times before entering the court premises.

About 100 city-based journalists today staged a demonstration here criticising the alleged inaction of Delhi police over the attack on reporters by some lawyers in the premises of a court in the national capital.

“I seek apology from mediapersons and that boy Kanhaiya Kumar for such mishappenings and misconduct”. The action includes suspension of licence for life.

He said BCI has taken a serious view of the incidents and termed it “shameful” and added “handful of lawyers have done this”. The Shahdara Bar Association said it did not agree with the Bar Council of India’s move on this matter.

But the warning had no effect on lawyers who gathered in large numbers at the Karkardooma courts around 4 pm Thursday to felicitate Chauhan and even took out a candlelight march to protest “victimisation” of lawyers.

As the televised violence triggered the Supreme Court to rush over senior lawyers to investigate, Mr Bassi said the situation “was not out of hand”. Chauhan also admitted that it was he who sent out an invitation to others to join in the proceedings at Patiala House court when Kanhaiya was brought in for questioning on Monday.

If that wasn’t enough they later turned against fellow lawyers and attacked them too.