JOURNALIST ARREST SHEDS LIGHT ON ASSAM CORRUPTION

Journalists express concern about growing intolerance of state functionaries

- ABHINANDAN MISHRA

The arrest of Guwahati-based journalist Dilwar Hussain Mazumder by Assam police, who was detained while investigating corruption in a local bank with ties to BJP leaders in influential positions, has sparked questions within party circles and among some sections of the RSS which is known for respecting critical journalism.

Many are now questioning how Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma's handling of the situation has put the party in a difficult position.

Mazumder, a reporter with the CrossCurrent, a news portal, and assistant general secretary of the Guwahati Press Club was arrested on Tuesday late night on charges of violating sections of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities Act, 189) and was later granted bail by the Kamrup (Metro) Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) Court in Guwahati on Wednesday.

However, even before he could come out from prison, he was arrested again on Thursday. Later, on Friday, he was given bail in the second case too.

The two arrests stemmed from his involvement in covering a protest which was focused on allegations of corruption within the Assam Cooperative Apex Bank (ACAB).

On Tuesday, Mazumder had conducted an interview with the bank's Managing Director Dambaru Saikia during the protest, which was organized in response to claims of financial mismanagement at the state-run cooperative bank.

The protest specifically pointed to a Rs 50-crore scam allegedly involving top officials of the bank, including Saikia and the bank's chairman Biswajit Phukan, a sitting BJP MLA.

Chief Minister Sarma is the Director of the said bank. The home department is also under him.

The core of the corruption allegations centers on significant bank's financial operations.

Mazumder's arrest came after he was summoned to the Panbazar police station for questioning following the protest.