Guwahati: Patriotic People’s Front Assam (PPFA) strongly condemned the incident where four police personnel were injured in a mob attack recently in Lakhimpur district of eastern Assam. The group of men in uniform from Naoboicha police station was targeted by a mob gathered in a mosque at Dakshin Pandhowa locality. Incidents of stone-pelting also partially damaged the police vehicle.
The police team was on duty to enforce lockdown claimed in view of novel corona virus infection across the country after receiving inputs that a large number of people gathered there after the end of Iftar. Police personnel appealed to everyone to maintain social distancing norms, but suddenly a group of goons attacked the team.
PPFA urges State chief minister (also in charge of home portfolio) Sarbananda Sonowal to take note of the incident and nab the culprits under the law as the police personnel were performing their official duties during Covid-19 pandemic that has already snatched away the lives of over thousand people in Bharat and infecting millions in the world.
The forum, in another issue, condemned and expressed dismay at the day long interrogation of Republic TV editor-in-chief Arnab Goswami by the Mumbai police over an FIR against him by a few Congress leaders. It condemned the incident of physical attack on Goswami along with his wife (Republic TV editor) Samyabrata Ray Goswami in Mumbai.
Goswami, who hails from Assam, described the incident in a video message – he and his wife were returning from their office when the attack took place. Two motor cycle-borne goons from Youth Congress tried to break the car window and threw some sort of liquid at the vehicle. PPFA criticized the Mumbai police for ignoring the attack on Goswami and instead going after the outspoken journalist as he criticized the Congress chief strongly.
The forum of nationalists expressed solidarity with Journalists’ Forum Assam (JFA) in declaring senior photojournalist Ronojoy (Ronny) Roy from Bengal, who died in suspected novel corona virus complications, as a media martyr in the ongoing worldwide war against the Covid-19 pandemic. Roy, 57, who lived in Kolkata, is the first working journalist in Bharat to succumb to the deadly virus infection. The adorable gentleman lost his wife Pinki Roy to cancer four years back.
Earlier JFA expressed concern over the infection to a large number of media persons while they went on reporting about the virus outbreak across Bharat. Over 50 media persons including reporters, video journalists, news photographers in Mumbai were tested positive for Covid-19. Few others in different cities also surfaced as suffering from the disease.
PPFA also appreciated the gesture shown by BJP led State government to include all journalists in a life insurance coverage of Rs 50 lakh each who were tirelessly reporting the pandemic in the state. Thanking CM Sonowal and finance-health minister Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma for the announcement, the patriotic outfit expressed hope that it would inspire scribes to continue their selfless services to the nation.
-by NJ Thakuria
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