A woman reporter with Times Now was allegedly kicked and struck on the head, and her cameraperson was manhandled, while both were reporting live from Kerala House during the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP)-led protest march to Parliament on July 20.

The reporter, who spoke to Newslaundry on condition of anonymity, said protesters accused her of belonging to “Godi media” before the confrontation turned physical. An FIR was registered against the protesters on July 25.

She is not the only woman journalist to have taken legal recourse. A reporter with NDTV spoke about the harassment she faced while covering the same protest. 

Between the two of them, the reporters’ accounts describe a pattern of heckling, physical assault, and – in the NDTV reporter’s case – her family being targeted alongside rape threats directed at her. Two more women journalists, from Navbharat Times and the independent outlet Molitics, also described similar hostility, suggesting the harassment was not limited to reporters from television networks protesters branded “Godi media”.

FIR filed after alleged assault near Kerala House

The Times Now reporter was on the ground giving a live report at around 2 pm on July 20 when protesters began questioning whether she belonged to “Godi Media” and made the situation hostile for her and her cameraperson. She said she did not........

© newslaundry