Bail granted to Indian reporters accused of sparking tension

A court in the northeastern state of Tripura granted bail to two Indian journalists who were detained last weekend on suspicion of inciting communal violence after tweeting that religious attacks on Muslims were worse than police had reported.

Assam's regional television station, North East Live, captured this image of journalists Samriddhi K. Sakunia and Swarna Jha speaking with the media, Nov. 14, 2021, in Nilambazar, in northeastern India. Photo Credits: North East Live via AP

Samriddhi K. Sakunia and Swarna Jha covered religious tensions in the state, where minority Muslims were attacked last month. At least one mosque and several shops and homes belonging to Muslims were vandalized, but no one was killed.

The attacks were seen as retaliation for violence against Hindus in neighboring Bangladesh earlier this month. Muslims make up less than 9% of Tripura's population, which is nearly 4 million.

According to Pijus Kanti Biswas, who represents the reporters, the judge granted them bail on Monday after stating that "their detention was not required in order to conduct the investigation."

According to police, the journalists were detained for posting false and fabricated news on social media.

Their employer, the HW News Network, a digital news channel, called their detention "sheer harassment" as well as a "targeting of the press."

Last Thursday, two reporters arrived in Tripura to report on the attacks. In a series of tweets, Sakunia showed video and images of mosques that had been vandalized, including photos of windows that were broken and damaged interiors she said were the result of an attack police denied. 

Police told Sakunia and his friend they were not allowed to leave the hotel Saturday night after arriving on site. After being allowed to leave Sunday, they were detained in Assam at the request of Tripura police.

Journalists and rights groups have condemned their detention, saying that media freedoms are under attack in India. The country has fallen in recent years on the World Press Freedom Index, ranking 142nd out of 180 nations in 2020.

* This article contained information that was sourced from VOA.