Editors Guild seeks details of ‘inaccessible’ second FIR against Langa

The Editors Guild of India has released a statement following the registration of a second FIR against The Hindu journalist Mahesh Langa on October 23, saying “punitive action” against journalists doing their work is “worrisome”.

The second FIR — following one regarding alleged GST violations — is about alleged theft because Langa was reportedly found to possess some “confidential documents” of the Gujarat Maritime Board. The details of it are, however, not yet known.

Also read: 'The Hindu' urges Gujarat police to drop fresh charges against Mahesh Langa

Course of work

Saying it has noted the development “with concern”, the Guild stated, “Journalists are often required to access and review sensitive documents in the course of their work, and initiating punitive action against them for doing their work is worrisome.”

Langa, a senior assistant editor with The Hindu, has been in custody since his arrest on October 8.

Also read: How pan-India probe led to uncovering of multi-crore GST scam in Gujarat

Second FIR not accessible online

The Guild hoped in its statement that Langa would “not be deprived of fair and speedy justice” and observed that it was “of grave concern” that the second FIR was not accessible to the public online, since the police have reportedly put it under the “sensitive category”.

“It is important that the Gujarat police disclose details about the second set of accusations levelled against him [Langa] over possessing the confidential documents,” the statement read.

Freedom of press

The Guild added that it “stands for the freedom of the press”, reiterating “the need to create a conducive environment across the country that allows all journalists to pursue their professional duties responsibly”.

The Guild’s statement comes a day after the editor of The Hindu, Suresh Nambath, urged the police to drop the charges against Langa in an X post.

A note from former Hindu editor

Malini Parthasarathy, a former editor of The Hindu, however, disagreed with the Guild’s view and said it was wrong to allege that this was an attack on press freedom while this incident centres “solely on an individual answerable in his private capacity for his own actions”.

In a lengthy X post, she wrote, “To cry foul when a journalist is arrested on what are evidently serious charges that require investigation & to allege that this is a case of an attack on the freedom of the press is wrong & does injustice to the essence of journalism-the pursuit of truth.

“No journalist is above the law. Press associations & journalists do no favour to this great profession by shielding journalists from accountability for their actions that have nothing to do with the publications they work for. The two FIRs against Mahesh Langa are not filed on the basis of reports filed by him @the_hindu & are for other charges that require further investigation.”

Journalists “must welcome such investigations”

She added that it was unfortunate that the incident had taken on the colour of an attack on press freedom and a violation of his journalistic rights. “In what way is his freedom of expression as a journalist being attacked? If we really care about the sanctity of press freedom, we should ensure that such freedom is not abused to shield anybody from facing the consequences of breaking the law.

“Journalists have an obligation to stay true to the canons of reporting, to maintain distance from their news sources, to ensure transparency in their dealings with business & political contacts so that the content they offer the public is untainted by commercial considerations. It is vital that reporters & editors welcome such investigations into their dealings, it will enhance their moral credibility when they come out unscathed.

“The respect that journalism as a profession commands and the trust that millions of readers & users place in our news content deserve the highest standards of probity. Nothing less,” she tweeted.