Guwahati: Journalism can be risky business, and every now and then, something happens to remind me of that. When I left my residence in Guwahati on Wednesday morning, it was to cover a protest that was threatening to become one of the worst witnessed in over three decades. By the time I got down to narrating this account, I had suffered severe bruises on my face and the rear windshield of our press vehicle was smashed.
The incident occurred around 8 pm, while the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill was being debated in the Rajya Sabha. My cameraperson and I were on our way to work from the Assam secretariat when we were stopped by a group of 10-15 protesters. They wanted to set our vehicle, a Mahindra Scorpio, on fire.
I tried to placate the protesters, some of whom were reeking of alcohol. I told them that I was a journalist, even showed them my identity card, but they wouldn't relent. While I was trying to convince them, somebody smashed the vehicle's rear windshield.
Alarmed, the driver stepped on the accelerator and the vehicle zoomed ahead without me. I ran after it, closely pursued by the group that had now become about 60 in number. Three of them caught hold of me, and I was relentlessly slapped and punched in the face. When I fell, they began kicking me.
Thankfully, that was when three other men came along and convinced my attackers to stop. They then escorted me all the way to the press vehicle, which was waiting 300 metres down the road.
Wednesday was when thousands of people took to the streets of the city to protest against the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, something they believe will turn them into a minority community in their own land. It was also when charged-up protesters lashed out at everything around them, be it journalists or some poor man's property. I should know because I was there.
I have witnessed many incidents of mob violence through my career as a journalist, but I believe the ongoing Northeast protests over the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill could have been avoided. They allowed discontent to brew in the region, making little effort to either assuage their feelings or put adequate security measures in place.
(Ratnadip Choudhury is Special Correspondent, Northeast)
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