The Hindu editor urges Gujarat Police to drop FIR against journalist Mahesh Langa
Gandhinagar: Suresh Nambath, editor of The Hindu, has called on the Gujarat Police to withdraw the FIR against senior assistant editor Mahesh Langa, who has been charged with possessing confidential documents related to the Gujarat Maritime Board (GMB). This is the second FIR against Langa, who was already in judicial custody for a separate case involving alleged Goods and Services Tax (GST) fraud.
The latest FIR was lodged at the Sector-7 police station in Gandhinagar on October 22, following a complaint from the GMB. The first FIR was filed based on a complaint by the Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI).
Nambath expressed concern over the charges against Langa in a series of posts on X, stating, “Journalists are required to process documents, including those of a confidential nature, in the line of their work. To file charges against them for possession of such documents is to undermine their journalistic work and fundamental rights and to subvert the public interest. We urge the Gujarat Police to drop the charges relating to the possession of classified documents against Mahesh.”
He also highlighted that the FIR filed against Langa was not publicly accessible, as it had been classified under the “sensitive” category. “This is completely unacceptable,” Nambath asserted.
In response, Gandhinagar SP Ravi Teja Vasamsetty clarified that the FIR was filed based on the GMB's complaint, stating, “It is our duty to investigate the claims.” He added that the FIR had been submitted to the court and that Langa's family could obtain it from there. Vasamsetty confirmed that no further actions had been taken against Langa at this time.
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Several Indians inducted into Russian Army remain missing: Report
New Delhi: In a concerning development, several Indians who were illegally enlisted in the Russian Army and forcibly sent to the war zone on the Russia-Ukraine border are reportedly still missing.
According to a report published by The Hindu on Sunday, citing communication from the Ministry of External Affairs and statements from the families of two missing men, Mohammad Amin Sheikh, a 65-year-old resident of Kupwara in Tangdhar, Jammu and Kashmir, said that his 27-year-old son, Zahoor Sheikh, last contacted the family on December 31, 2023.
Amin Sheikh mentioned that his son said that he was going for training and would not be available for the next three months on phone. “But when we started getting news about the deaths of Indians in Russia in January, we got worried and called on his number. We could not reach him. We are yet to hear from him,” Sheikh, a retired Inspector from the Public Health Department in Jammu and Kashmir, was quoted as saying by the publication.
Last week, Mohammad Amin Sheikh and his two other sons travelled to New Delhi to seek answers from the Ministry of External Affairs and the Russian Embassy after the Indian Embassy in Moscow failed to give them information about Zahoor Sheikh.
“We submitted a petition at the Russian Embassy,” 31-year-old Aijaz Amin, Zahoor Sheikh’s elder brother, told The Hindu. “They said they are looking into the matter. The MEA officials said that at least 15 Indians are still missing and though the Russian government is cooperative, their commanders on the ground are not responsive,” he added.
Zahoor had travelled to Russia after he came across a YouTube video promising the job of a security helper in Russia. Instead, he was reportedly deceived into joining the Russian Army.
Similarly, 30-year-old Mandeep, from Jalandhar in Punjab, has been missing since March. His brother, Jagdeep Kumar, also arrived in Delhi, looking for answers from the government about his sibling's whereabouts.
“We last spoke on March 3. He initially went to Armenia and was supposed to go to Italy from there in search of work. Instead, he was tricked by an agent to go to Russia and was forced to join the Russian Army. He was sent to the war zone after a few days of training,” Kumar told The Hindu.
Kumar said he met officials from the External Affairs Ministry in the capital city, who told him that at least 25 Indians were reported missing in Russia.
