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BBC Hindi journalist, Alok Prakash Putul, had to leave his assignment in Bastar, Chhattisgarh midway after he received threats.
According to the version posted by Putul in a BBC Hindi report, on Saturday, a local villager told him that people are looking for him and “anything can happen.”
Prior to this, Putul had tried to contact IG Bastar range, Shivram Prasad Kalluri. After many efforts, Kalluri texted him a link of his previous story and accused his reporting as ‘biased and prejudiced’.
Not just Kalluri but another senior policeman RN Das, SP Bastar, also had similar response for Putul.
Bastar has been a battlefield between police and Naxalites for over a decade now. When in such tough conditions – where there is a threat to safety and police officials are not even prepared to talk to you – it is better to leave the area.
When another BBC journalist asked IG Kalluri about the incident, Kalluri denied to acknowledge him as a journalist.
Reporting in Bastar is not easy as both police and naxals do not like to be seen in the bad light. Hence, unbiased reporting becomes a tough call. Recently another journalist Malini Subraniam was attacked and intimidated in Bastar.
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