ABP Majha had debunked allegations that its reportage on April 14 could be linked to the huge crowd of migrants outside Bandra (West) station on Tuesday afternoon.
In a statement, the Marathi TV news channel termed reports linking the migrant gathering with its news reports as "entirely misconceived and circulated with the sole intention of baselessly maligning ABP Majha".
The move to arrest a senior journalist of a reputed media house was condemned by news fraternity and several media associations including News Broadcasters Association (NBA) and Broadcast Editors' Association (BEA).
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While NBA wrote to Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddav Thackeray seeking withdrawal of charges on Kulkarni, BEA denounced the arrest of ABP Majha journalist in connection with the Bandra episode.
"NBA condemns the said act of unreasonable arrest. The arrest is a serious infringement on the right of freedom of speech and is a frontal assault on the free Press. The fundamental right of freedom of speech is sought to be gagged and any further custody and incarceration of him would be a serious infraction of the constitutional mandate and would also threaten his life," NBA President Rajat Sharma's letter to Maharashtra CM read.
"Like other frontline crews, such as doctors, police and paramedics, journalists are also performing their professional duties under intense pressure. It's the responsibility of the state to ensure a conducive environment for journalism during these hard times," BEA President Supriya Prasad said in her statement.
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Avinash Pandey, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), ABP News Network expressed his gratitude towards the news fraternity who stood in support Kulkarni and ABP Majha.
I am thankful to every journalist who stood by us in support of ‘responsible journalism’. Today, Journalists are risking their lives by going out of home and reporting the truth, which is incredible.- Avinash Pandey, CEO, ABP News Network
Read The Full Text Of The Statement Issued By Avinash Pandey, CEO, ABP News Network:
I am thankful to every journalist who stood by us in support of ‘responsible journalism’. Today, Journalists are risking their lives by going out of home and reporting the truth, which is incredible. ABP Majha’s reporter Rahul Gurugranth Kulkarni, who was falsely accused and arrested for rumour-mongering and spreading fake news through the channel, has been granted a bail by the court.
Once again, we at ABP Majha continue to stand our ground and will confront any malicious attempt to damage our reputation with all our sincerity and grit. To insinuate that reports are based on fake news was absolutely outrageous. Nonetheless, we have full faith in the judiciary system of India and we will do everything in our capacity to fight this menace of fake news and misinformation.
ABP Majha is a respectable and responsible news channel and has, in the past, demonstrated the same, by ensuring accuracy of information and credibility of its sources before broadcasting and Rahul Kulkarni has not deviated from practices of responsible journalism. With that said, we will ensure our full support to an impartial investigation, to bring the real culprits to justice.
Claiming its stories were broadcast in the public interest, ABP Majha had said that it had all valid documents and information, on the basis of which it ran multiple stories on the channel.
"There is no conceivable way in which the crowds that gathered at the Bandra West Station from around 3.45 pm can be linked to our stories. To insinuate that our running of the story and the updates thereafter amount to a criminal act is outrageous," ABP Majha said in a statement earlier in the day.
It also expressed shock and dismay over the arrest of its reporter Rahul Kulkarni and said it would take immediate legal measures in this regard.
The channel contended that there was no denial of the Railway Ministry's letter of April 13 recommending running of trains to return migrants to their hometowns, but after the RM's announcement that no trains would be run till May 3, 2020, it had immediately run the story on its news bulletins