Rajiv Sharma through a series of reports had exposed cattle smuggling scams.
Assam:
Assam’s Dhubri’s police chief, Yuvraj, has been transferred after the local police were slammed for arresting a journalist early on Thursday that allegedly led to his father’s death due to cardiac arrest.
Rajiv Sharma, who is the general secretary of Dhubri Press Club and a regional correspondent for a vernacular news channel, was arrested in connection with an extortion case at around 2 am from his residence, where he lived with his 64-year-old father, Sudhin Sharma.
Rajiv Sharma through a series of reports had exposed cattle smuggling scams.
Sudhin Sharma had a cardiac arrest after the arrest. With no help around, he died alone in his residence.
Journalist Rajiv Sharma was granted an interim bail the same morning. He found his father dead when he returned to his house.
He performed the funeral of his father at Gauripur cremation ground in the presence of a number of journalists and relatives on Thursday evening.
Yuvraj, through an official notification from the state Home Affairs department, was transferred after the police were severely criticised for the treatment meted out to the accused.
The Guwahati Press Club, meanwhile, has termed the incident as unfortunate and has demanded intervention of Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal.
“We want the CM to intervene and ensure that Mr Sharma is not harassed in the name of investigation,” president Manoj Kumar Nath and secretary Sanjay Ray of the press club said in a statement.
Dhubri divisional forest officer (DFO), Biswajit Roy, had alleged Mr Sharma tried to extort Rs 8 lakh from him on the basis of fabricated news regarding his involvement in a cattle smuggling syndicate.
The Assam Police have handed over the case to the state Criminal Investigation Department.
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