Anti-CEC protests: Police assaulting media professionals amounts to attack on their livelihood, say senior journalists
Senior journalists and media organizations gathered at the Press Club of India to protest the alleged police assault and detention of reporters covering Cockroach Janta Party protests. Speakers argued that these actions violate the constitutional right to work and represent an attempt by the state to control media documentation.
Why it matters
This highlights growing tensions regarding press freedom and the safety of journalists covering political dissent in India.
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”.
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