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The Kerala State Police on Monday carried out searches at the offices of the Malayalam web portal ‘Marunadan Malayali’, and residences of several people associated with it, in connection with a case against its editor for allegedly ‘deliberately insulting’ CPI(M) legislator PV Sreenijin.
On Tuesday, Marunadan Malayali editor Shajan Skaria moved the Supreme Court, challenging the Kerala High Court’s June 30 order denying him bail before arrest in the case.
A criminal case was filed against Skaria based on a complaint by Sreenijin, alleging that Skaria intentionally insulted him by making “false allegations and accusations through a video uploaded in Marunadan Malayali” on 24 May. The case was registered under Section 3(1)(r) and 3(1)(u) of the Scheduled Castes and Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, and Section 120 of the Kerala Police Act.
During searches at various locations, including offices in Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi, the police confiscated several items, including laptops and cameras.
In a video posted on Marunadan Malayali’s YouTube channel on Tuesday, Skaria said searches showed that politicians and criminals had gathered against the gate and wanted to watch it close. He said, “The police raided offices all over the country as if they were looking for a terrorist,” adding that “the raids took place not only on the homes of journalists, but even on the headquarters of their relatives and friends.” He said 22 computers, four laptops and four cameras were seized.
The Kerala State Working Journalists Confederation (KUWJ) condemned the police action. “The police are free to conduct an investigation against Shajan if he is facing a case. But it is very unfortunate that the homes of journalists associated with Marunadan Malayali were raided.”
On June 30, during the dismissal of Skaria’s appeal challenging a special court’s decision to deny him release on anticipatory bail in the case, Judge F. Ensure the accuracy and completeness of the news. The four questions and sometimes the fifth “why” were used to serve as a framework for journalists to gather information. Videos like the one in question make one wonder if Ws have been replaced by Ds – denigrate, defame, curse and destroy.”
The court noted that Sakarya made murder allegations against Sreingen and made insinuations against the legislator’s father-in-law (formerly CJI KG Balakrishnan), as well as defaming unnamed judicial officers.
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