Bhubaneswar: The journalists covering the State Legislative Assembly proceedings boycotted the first half session today in protest against the Assembly Secretariat’s decision to ban mobile phones in the Press Gallery.
The working journalists staged a demonstration near the Mahatma Gandhi statue, rejecting the above decision. They declared that they would not cover the Assembly proceedings until the restriction on mobile phones was lifted.
Later, OLA Speaker Surama Padhy convened a meeting of the representatives from the agitating journalists and assured to rollback the restriction imposed on the scribes.
The Assembly Secretariat has imposed the restriction on the journalists in the aftermath of a video footage of yesterday’s incident that went viral in social media.
In protest of the direction, the journalists sat on dharna before the Mahatma Gandhi statue. Both BJD and Congress MLAs supported the agitation of the journalists. Even Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) President Bhakta Charan Das also sent two senior party leaders to join the protest of the scribes.
BJD MLA and former minister Arun Kumar Sahoo strongly condemned the restriction on media and urged the Speaker not to interfere with the freedom of the press.
Suspended from the House, Congress MLA Taraprasad Bahinipati strongly criticised the action and said his party was fully supporting the journalists’ protest.
Former Congress MLA Sura Routray also opposed the restriction on the reporters.
During the protest, a senior journalist became faint and was admitted to the Assembly hospital.
Later, the journalists withdrew their protest after the Speaker said she will roll back the direction and said that there will be no restriction on journalists to carry their mobile phones to the press gallery, but they cannot take photographs or do video recording from the press gallery.
As per the decision taken in the meeting, mobile phones will remain on a silent mode in the press gallery. The Information and Public Relations Department will provide adequate photos of Question Hour to Media organizations.
Speaker Smt.Padhy said that the Assembly will organize an orientation program for the journalists covering the proceedings of the House.