New Delhi, 19 July 2024: The Indian Journalists Union (IJU) expresses serious concern over protesting students in Dhaka, Bangladesh, setting on fire the reception building of the state broadcaster Bangladesh TV (BTV) on Thursday and the government imposing a complete internet ban across the nation. 

The ongoing protests by students demanding reforms in the reservation system for government jobs, including for the relatives of 1971 war heroes, who fought for the country’s independence, has so far claimed 32 lives. Hundreds of protestors gathered outside BTV’s headquarters, set ablaze the network’s reception and dozens of vehicles parked outside. The police fired rubber bullets to bring some order. While initial reports said ‘many people’ were trapped inside the building, an officer said all people had been safely evacuated from the building. 

In a statement, IJU President and former member of Press Council of India, Geetartha Pathak and Secretary General and International Federation of Journalists Vice President Sabina Inderjit said it was unfortunate that the protestors targeted the state broadcaster building and its employees as the media is for public service and must be allowed to carry out its responsibilities in informing the citizens, specially in times of crisis. 

At same time, IJU said restricting internet services, including mobile network, goes against the right to information and serves no purpose. It urged the protestors not to target the media and urged the government to restore back internet services so that citizens can stay informed.