In a culmination of a crusade launched nearly eight years ago by journalists against the recurring attacks on members of fourth estate in various parts of the State, both the Houses of Maharashtra legislature on Friday passed a bill to prevent violence against media persons and damage or loss of property of media houses.
While Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis introduced the Maharashtra Media persons and Media Institutions (Prevention of Violence and Damage or loss to property) Bill, 2017 in the State Assembly, Minister of State for Home Ranjit Patil tabled the same bill in the Council.
With the Opposition members not present, both the Houses passed the bill without any discussion.
The legislation seeks to prevent recurring attacks on journalists and media houses while carrying out their duties.
The legislation has stipulated that anyone who commits or attempts to commit/ abets/ instigates or provokes the commission of any act of violence, shall be punished with imprisonment, which may extend to three years, or with fine, which may extend to Rs 50,000 or with both.
Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure Code, 1973, a police officer not below the rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police shall investigate any offence under this bill which will become an Act once it receives the Governor’s assent.
According to the legislation, the offender shall be liable to pay compensation for damage or loss caused to the property of the media person or media house, as determined by the court and also be liable to reimburse the medical expenditure incurred by the media person.
If the compensation and medical expenditure is not paid, it will be recovered as it were arrears of land revenue.
If a media person wilfully misuses or uses for malicious purposes or makes a false complaint under the provisions of the legislation, he or she shall be punishable with imprisonment which may extend up to three years or with fine, which may extend to Rs 50,000 or with both.
The media person concerned, after conviction under this Act, shall not be entitled for any government benefit as media person and his accreditation card, if any, shall be permanently revoked.
A media institution has been defined as any registered newspaper establishment, news channel establishment, news based electronic media establishment or news station establishment.
A media person means a person, whose principal vocation is that of a journalist, who is employed as a journalist, whether on regular or contract basis. Media person is defined as editor, sub editor, news editor, reporter, correspondent, cartoonist, news photographer, television cameraman, leader-writer, feature writer, copy tester and proof reader.
Violence is defined as an act, which causes or may cause any harm, injury or endangering life of a media person during the discharge of his duty as a media person or causing damage or loss of property belonging to any media person or media institution.
While introducing the bill, the chief minister said that the State government had considered it expedient to enact a special law to prevent “rampant instances” of violence and attacks against media persons and damage or loss to the property of media institutions.
“The need is to enact a special law to effectively curb the occurrence of such incidents in the state and to protect and safeguard the media persons and property of the media persons and media houses,” Fadnavis said.
Welcoming the law brought in by the Maharashtra, Mantralaya Aani Vidhimandal Vartahar Sangh (Secretariat and legislature Reporters’ Association) said: “Fadnavis has kept his promise of enacting a law to prevent attacks on journalists”.
The Other journalists – the Press Club, Mumbai, Bombay Union of Journalists and Maharashtra Sampadak Parishad – also welcomed the journalist-friendly legislation.
“It’s a historic day for our fraternity and the Mumbai Press Club as our struggle for a law to protect working journalists has been passed by the Maharashtra legislature... ..We thank Fadnavis for providing us with a legal deterrent which will be effective in ensuring safe working conditions for working journalists,” a statement issued by the Press Club said.
It may be recalled that way back late 2009, several journalist organizations in Maharashtra had joined hands to form the ‘Committee Against Attacks on Journalists’ and press the Maharashtra government for greater protective legislation.
The collective action by various journalist organisations had come in the wake of a series of attacks on journalists and media houses in 2009. In November 2009, Shiv Sainiks vandalized and attacked journalist and staff inside the IBN lokmat office at Vikhroli. Dattatreya Ambekar, a journalist in Ambejogai, had both his legs broken by a gang of bootleggers operating in Beed district because he dared write a series of exposes. A couple of months earlier, a Times of India journalist Viju B attacked when surveying the illegal sand mining in Mahad, while another journalist Amit Joshi a staffer with ‘Zee 24 Taas’ channel had been thrashed black and blue by a gang at Dadar while covering a fire and had to be hospitalized.
The journalist organisations in the state have since been clamouring for a legislation to prevent attacks on journalists and media houses.
Meanwhile, during a discussion on a Calling Attention motion moved in the State Council on Friday, Congress legislator Sanjay Dutt rooted for the state government introducing a Pension scheme for Journalists and that the same be done in a time-frame before the Monsoon session of State legislature. “Many States, even small ones like Goa, Delhi, Jharkhand, Arunachal Pradesh, etc, are giving Pension to journalists, then why can’t Maharashtra also do soIJ,” Dutt asked.
In his reply, the chief minister assured the Upper House that the state government would positively consider Dutt’s suggestion.