Journalists threaten to boycott programmes post-police 'misbehaviour'; CM apologises

Mangalore, August 23: In an unforeseen development, journalists of Mangalore threatened to boycott all the programmes of Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa in the city, after the police misbehaved with them at the Airport on Monday morning, August 23.

Yeddyurappa landed at the Mangalore Airport at around 8:30 am and spoke to mediapersons for a couple of minutes and got into a Volvo bus followed by a galaxy of local ministers and MLAs.

When journalists decided to follow the CM's vehicle, two police constables stopped their vehicle and said that they had received order from higher authorities to do so. They said that they cannot allow any vehicle for 10 minutes.

Irked by this, journalists took a decision to boycott the programmes to be attended by the Chief of the state in the city.

However, Yeddyurappa later addressed mediapersons at Circuit House and apologized himself, for the incident. He ordered the suspension of Shyam Sunder, Bajpe SI, for misbehaving with the representatives of the press. However, mediapersons requested the CM not to take as harsh an action as suspension, and urged him to make sure that he took note of the incident and see to it that it doesn't happen in the future. The CM then withdrew his suspension announcement and ordered that the officer be temporarily relieved of his duties. He also warned Seemanth Kumar Singh, Mangalore Police Commissioner, to take care of his subordinates and stated that by merely sporting Khakhi, one does not get entitled to misbehave or assault others.

Due to the incident, the CM's move to travel in a Volvo bus in order to avert the traffic jam throughout his city journey, had taken a strange turn. Mediapersons of the city had stood firm with an adamant demand that the CM, who had left the airport by Volvo allegedly ordering the authorities to allow the press vehicle to move forward only after 10 minutes, had demanded that he should come back to the same spot and allow them to follow him, if he wants coverage for all his programmes across the city.

Stunned by the firm decision of undivided mediapersons of Mangalore, MLC Ganesh Karnik, who was also among those escorting the CM, rushed back to the Airport where mediapersons had gathered, apologized, and requested them to follow the CM. The efforts of DCP Ramesh and Panambur Police Inspector Valentine D'Souza who also rushed to the spot to convince the media persons, had turned futile too.

Besides, Deputy Commissioner V Ponnuraj and City Police Commissioner Seemanth Kumar Singh too had requested the media persons to forget the issue. After a long discussion, Journalists under leadership of Ramakrishna, Vice President of District Working Journalists Association, DK, agreed to meet the CM at Circuit House.