Chhattisgarh: Journalist held for WhatsApp message gets bail

Dantewada-based journalist Prabhat Singh. (Source: ANI)

THE CHHATTISGARH High Court has granted bail to a Dantewada-based journalist, who was arrested in March for allegedly posting an “obscene message” about a senior Bastar range police officer on a WhatsApp group.

Apart from provisions in the IT Act, Prabhat Singh had been charged in two cases of cheating and one of obstructing a public servant on duty, registered against him in 2015, but added to the charges later. The court has given bail on all four charges.

Read | Chhattisgarh: Journalist arrested for allegedly taking a dig at a cop on WhatsApp

In March, the police said Singh was arrested after a complaint about a WhatsApp message that read: “Patrakaar suraksha kanoon se keval unhen parhez hai jo already mama ki ***** mein baithe hai (Only those who are already sitting in mama’s ***** have a problem with the journalists’ protection law). “Mama” is used by journalists to refer to a police officer.