Guwahati: The Supreme Court on Friday restrained Assam Police from taking any coercive action against senior journalist Siddharth Varadarajan and other journalists, including the consulting editor working with the web portal “The Wire”, in connection with an FIR lodged against them over a news article.
A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi passed the order after senior advocate Nitya Ramakrishnan, appearing for the journalists, said that Assam police was circumventing the earlier orders passed by the court.
She said Vardarajan and other journalists, including a consulting editor, have been summoned Friday for recording statements in an old FIR lodged in May and there is apprehension that they may be arrested.
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On August 12, the top court had protected Vardarajan and restrained the Assam police from taking any coercive action against him in connection with an FIR lodged against him over an article on ‘Operation Sindoor’.
