In a shocking display of lawlessness and political arrogance, media persons covering a Congress protest rally in Dhanbad were brutally assaulted by party workers on Wednesday, 16th of April. The incident, which unfolded at Randhir Verma Chowk, Dhanbad during a demonstration against the National Herald issue, has triggered widespread outrage among journalist associations and civil society. As per eyewitness accounts, the violence broke out when journalists attempted to record a heated quarrel between Congress workers. The attackers including Saif Ansari and Kaif Ansari, sons of district Congress executive president Rashid Raja, along with their cousins targeted media personnel, snatching mobile phones and vandalizing equipment. Shahid, a photographer with Dainik Jagran, suffered serious facial injuries after being struck with an iron rod and was rushed to Sadar Hospital.
The video is from INDI Alliance-ruled state Jharkhand. The son of a Congress leader & his friends entered the Press Club in Dhanbad and brutally assaulted journalists.
Yeah, Press isn’t under attack… Being beaten by Pappu sena can never be.. pic.twitter.com/kD47Z63slU
— Mr Sinha (@MrSinha_) April 17, 2025
The brazenness of this attack cannot be overstated. It was not a case of spontaneous chaos but a deliberate attempt to suppress media coverage of internal party strife. Such actions amount to a direct assault on freedom of expression, a core pillar of democracy. The Congress party, once seen as the custodian of democratic values, now appears to be morphing into an entity intolerant of dissent—even when it comes from the press. A formal complaint has been lodged at the Dhanbad Sadar police station, naming the assailants. Though the stolen mobile phones were reportedly returned after intervention from senior Congress leaders, the damage—both physical and symbolic—was already done.
The Dhanbad Press Club has strongly condemned the incident. President Sanjeev Kumar Jha and General Secretary Ajay Prasad have called for the immediate arrest of the culprits, warning that if justice is delayed, they will launch a full-scale agitation. “This is not just about one incident. It’s about the dangerous precedent it sets when journalists are attacked for doing their job,” they said. Even Congress State Disciplinary Committee chairman Brajendra Prasad Singh, while calling the incident “unfortunate,” admitted that such a disgraceful episode had never occurred during his decade-long leadership in the district.
The incident has exposed a disturbing tendency within the Congress to curb press freedom whenever narratives don’t align with their political convenience. It is imperative that the party is held accountable not only legally but also morally for attempting to muzzle the voice of the media. Every now and then, the grand old party can be seen pointing fingers upon the ruling dispensation at the centre but this meets with grave hypocricy with its party leaders assaulting journalists and trying to undermine freedom of expression.
