Journalists caught in crossfire amid crackdown on drug trafficking through Tripura

S S Ali

Agartala: These are tough times for journalists in Tripura. With a reinvigorated campaign led by the Biplab Deb-led BJP government against drug trade in the state, journalists covering the subject have been on radar of both the mafia and the security forces, often leading to them being targeted on the job or off it.

Recent narcotic hauls and arrests of peddlers, as well as accomplice officials of law and order department, have indicated that the 11-month old government in Tripura is serious about curtailing free movement of narcotic substances through the state, which shares a 856 km long international border with Bangladesh on the north, south and west. This stern approach of Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb while following up on one of party’s pre-election pledges, wherein he has given a free hand to investigators, has laid bare involvement of several state police personnel in drug trafficking. Since June last year, five police personnel of the Tripura Police have been arrested and four others suspended from service under the narcotics control operation. Inquiries have been ordered against few others and more personnel are expected to be exposed, as the police say that arrested peddlers are giving out these names.

At least five journalists received injuries in recent attacks that occurred at Dharmanagar, Pecharthal, Sonamura, Belonia and Khowai subdivisions as a consequence of their reporting on drug trafficking. Aggrieved journalists did not get support from the police officers they approached, they claim.

Assam Rifles under lens

The attack on Sadek Mia, a journalist working for a TV news channel in Sonamura subdivision, on January 27 has exposed a third angle to the nexus around drug trade in state. Apart from the mafia and the police, involvement of alleged members of Assam Rifles has come forth, with Mia reporting that he was abducted and roughed up by Assam Rifles personnel. Sonamura has been infamous as a drug trafficking node and vehicles of Assam Rifles frequent the border locations that are beyond their operational jurisdiction.

“I went to the border area after receiving information about suspicious movement of a vehicle without number plate. All of a sudden some people dressed in security uniforms pushed me in a vehicle in which I was beaten up,” reads the complaint Mia filed at local police station.

A severely injured Mia was thrown out of the running vehicle by the "security men" after being warned of dire consequences. Police officials are maintaining silence on identity of the personnel involved in this attack citing confidentiality of investigation.

Ashish Chakraborty, a journalist from Khowai, has been provided police protection after he claimed receiving threats from a few police officers as well as drug mafia. On the same days as Mia was attacked in Sonamura, miscreants barged into his home, Chakraborty says, and manhandled him while threatening to stop writing against drug smuggling. He reports for Agartala-based vernacular daily Dainik Sambad and had recently covered the arrest in a drug trafficking case of an Agartala-based mafia don, whose henchmen are reported to be threatening him.

“It’s a triangular nexus between police, BSF and Assam Rifles to smuggle in and out drug substances in some areas. They are responsible for assaults of journalists,” Debashish Majumder, general secretary of Tripura Working Journalists Association, alleges.

Journalists’ Union leader Pintu Lal Dey believes that these incidents should not be seen as isolated cases. He says motive behind the attacks is to create fear in minds of journalists to keep them from reporting drug related issues.

Press freedom and increasing hostility

Tripura off late has not been a friendly state for journalists working here as they face repercussions of reporting on issues involving corruption and crime quite directly. Murder of two journalists---Shantanu Bhowmik and Sudip Datta Bhowmik---within a span of a couple of months in 2017 shook the fraternity in the state.

The attacks have continued despite a reformed approach towards journalists from the government under the BJP rule.

“Unlike previous regimes our government has ensured press freedom and doing best to support the journalists. Announcement of pension scheme for veteran journalists worth Rs 10,000 a month is a major decision of the government,” says BJP spokesperson Nabendu Bhattacharjee.

Subal Kumar Dey, editor of Syandan Patrika, a popular vernacular daily, expresses concern over repeated incidents of assault and intimidation against journalists, particularly in rural areas. Dey, also a president of Agartala Press Club, says they had organised protests after Shantanu and Sudip were murdered and will continue to seek protection of all journalists in solidarity.

Long, porous border

Among all items smuggled through Tripura, Cannabis has been an extremely popular one, traded illegally to Bangladesh and several Indian states. Locally attributed as a cash crop, cannabis has overshadowed the market for Phensedyl in Bangladesh, a cough syrup that was popular among Muslim youths who shun alcohol because of faith. However, recent hauls of Brown Sugar and stimulating tablets such as Yaba in state have alarmed security officials who need to uncover the depth of narcotic problem in state.

Despite construction of a barbed wire fence along most of the 856km boundary with Bangladesh and presence of watch towers, night vision devices and other surveillance gadgets, smuggling of contraband continues unabated.

Tripura police have between 9 March 2018, when the new government took charge, and 5 September 2018 have arrested 234 people and registered 254 cases apart from seizing 40,873 kg cannabis, 79,471 bottles of cough syrups, 1,35,425 tablets, 1,993.009 gm of heroin, 619.54 gm of smack. In 2017, a total of 65 persons were arrested and 83 cases registered in drug related crimes. The confiscated narcotic substances were also marginal, except for cough syrup bottles: 8,589 kg cannabis, 1,18,825 bottles of cough syrup, 23.31 gm heroin, 59.54 gm smack. No tablets were seized in 2017. [*Charts attached]

Tripura police seem determined to free the state of its drug menace. “We have two goals to achieve – first, to check smuggling both ways and second, to free Tripura from drug addiction,” says a senior police officer who wished to remain anonymous.