In the midst of battle for survival endured by a Tamil Nadu journalist who was brutally attacked by a group of unidentified men, Chief Minister MK Stalin has condemned the attack and announced compensation for the journalist. MK Stalin has also directed to put the concerned police inspector in the waiting list even as special police teams were formed to nab the assailants.
The journalist has been identified as 30-year-old Nesaprabhu who has been working as a reporter for News 7 Tamil channel in Palladam, Tiruppur. He was attacked by miscreants on Wednesday with sickles and knives and has been battling for life. Nesaprabhu has suffered 65 cracks on his body and has been getting treated at the Intensive Care Unit of a private hospital in Bangalore.
It has been reported that the cost for his medical treatment and hospitalization would come around Rs 20 lakhs. While several journalists had staged protests across the state, they also had urged the state government to incur the medical expenses. As the incident has shocked the media persons in the state, Chief Minister MK Stalin reacted to it and condemned the assault on Nesaprabhu.
In a statement, the Chief Minister has assured strong legal action against the assailants and said that instructions have been issued to put the local police inspector in Palladam to the waiting list, over the charges of not acting on the calls from journalist Nesaprabhu that his life is under risk and seeking protection from the police before this incident.
By citing it as a special case, the Chief Minister has also announced a compensation of Rs 3 lakh from the Journalists Welfare Board. The shocking incident has showcased a growing trend of unethical verbal and physical treatments against journalists in Tamil Nadu. Besides journalists, several political leaders have also sharply criticized the brutal attack and demanded the government to take appropriate action.
This incident has furthered the level of uncertainty endured by the journalists who are restlessly reporting over a range of issues and injustices both from on the ground and online. In recent times, the journalists in Tamil Nadu had faced verbal harassments and abuses from political leaders for questioning them.
The attack on Nesaprabhu has come at a time when a journalist union has announced to protest against Tamil Nadu BJP unit chief Annamalai for his derogative and obnoxious comments against a veteran journalist about his interview with Tamil Nadu Minister for Youth Affairs and Sports Development, Udhayanidhi Stalin. Annamalai's remarks and conduct of belittling journalists for a long time have been instigating an enmity from the BJP cadres against the journalists. While such verbal harassments threatened the rights possessed by journalists, this brazen attack on journalist Nesaprabhu has exhibited eroding safety measures for them.
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