Anti-CEC protests: Police assaulting media professionals amounts to attack on their livelihood, say senior journalists

Journalists seen during the gathering at the Press Club of India at New Delhi on October 13, 2026. Photo: X/@PCITweets

Journalists from a large number of media organisations gathered at the Press Club of India here on Tuesday (October 13, 2026) condemning the police crackdown on media professionals during the protest by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) during the weekend of October 10 to 11. Several journalists provided first-person accounts of assault and detention at the hands of the Delhi Police and demanded safety of their livelihood.

Among the journalists who narrated a first-person account on the occasion were reporters from the BBC, Newslaundry, The Quint, Caravan, and The Wire. Narrating his experience of getting detained by the Delhi Police, Sarthak of The Quint recounted how he was treated in an aggressive manner by the police and stated that “the State wants to decide who will document its actions”.

‘A public good’

Press Club of India president Sangeeta Barooah Pisharoty said the incidents of attacks by the police and security personnel on media professionals showed that the “right to work”, which is a constitutional right is under attack. “A journalist’s role in a democracy is vital as journalism is a public good and the attack on journalists is a violation of that constitutional right and that is why we organised the press conference,” said Ms. Barooah Pisharoty.