Correspondent – Vipin Shukla
Lucknow. Journalism and power conflict in Uttar Pradesh’s capital Lucknow has once again made headlines. A third FIR has been lodged against senior journalist Abhishek Upadhyay at Hazratganj police station. It is alleged that he made inflammatory reporting in the case to the death of a 19 -year -old youth Deepak Gupta killed by animal smugglers in Gorakhpur.
The journalist says that he reported only the facts that the relatives of the deceased had put in front of the media cameras. Despite this, a case was registered in serious sections like inciting a riot.
The journalist launched a scathing attack, calling this action an attack on freedom of expression.
He said – “Yogi ji is so afraid of the edge of the pen? If you want to fight, then fight from the front, not with the help of anonymous complainants.”
He alleged that in the eyes of the government, the power and influential people are saved, while sharing the cuttings of many newspapers in the Gorakhpur scandal, the senior journalist showed that they have also run the same news but they were only targeted like every time. This step of the government is like strangling healthy journalism. It is not right to continuously target journalists showing sales.
The journalist said in sharp words –
> “I should not be afraid of FIR, people who are involved in scams, corruption and power protection. I am being targeted only after being upset with my reporting.”
Earlier, an FIR has been lodged against him at Hazratganj police station, in which Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath was described as “God”.
The journalist raised the question on this –
> “Is God so weak that he should attack the shadow and anonymous people?”
The journalist, while satirizing, said that if the government has to take action against them, then the next FIR should be lodged directly in the name of the Chief Minister. Taking a sarcasm, he suggested that the next FIR should be filed against me for defamation because I have told God the best from the Chief Minister.
Constant FIRs filed against the journalist have created a stir not only in journalist organizations but also intellectuals and political circles. Its effect on the right to freedom of press and the right to expression is considered serious.
This new battle that arose from Lucknow is not only a conflict between a journalist and the government, but is also raising an important question of the power of freedom of journalism in democracy.
