Gurgaon protest: IWPC condemns baton charging on mediapersons

The Indian Women Press Corps (IWPC) today condemned the baton charging on a group of protesters outside the Ryan International School in Gurgaon in which some mediapersons covering it were also injured.
Hundreds of angry parents yesterday staged a protest outside the school, seeking a CBI probe into the murder of a seven-year-old school boy.
The IWPC "condemns in unequivocal terms" the baton charging on journalists by some members of the Haryana police.
Over 50 protesters and nine journalists from regional as well as national media were injured as the Gurgaon Police launched baton charges to quell the protest. The act also resulted in damage to equipment of some mediapersons.

Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar has also condemned the incident and termed it as "unfortunate".
He has also ordered action against the erring policemen.

"It is shocking that not only mediapersons were prevented from conducting their duties but they were grievously assaulted and media equipment damaged. This is the second occasion in recent times that journalists have been attacked in Haryana," the IWPC said in a statement.
"We urge the government to inquire into the incident and recommend suitable action against the high-handedness of the police.
"We demand that the state government ensure that the injured journalists get treatment and they get compensated for suffering damage to their equipment," it said.