Police have arrested two more suspected culprits from the group that publicly molested and stripped a teenage girl in Guwahati last Monday, even as investigations are on to probe charges by an activist that a television journalist had instigated the crowd to go after the victim.

“We have arrested another two people, who were also involved in the crime on July 9. The two - Diganta Basumatary and Nabajyoti Deka were arrested.

We are raiding places to trace the other culprits,” said a senior police official.  The police are also looking into the allegation that the particular journalist instigated the mob to go after the victim and molest her.

Meanwhile, according to reports Sunday, main accused in Guwahati molestation case Amar Jyoti Kalita was reportedly arrested in Odisha. However, Odisha DGP Prakash Mishra denied the report of his detention.

Assam police released photographs of five absconding suspects including that of Amar Jyoti Kalita on July 9 night. According to IBNS report, police have announced a cash reward for providing information of the accused persons at Rs 50,000 for Amar Jyoti Kalita and Rs 25,000 each for other four accused persons.

Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi also set a 48 hour deadline for the Assam police to nab the culprits, who were identified in video footage.

On Sunday hundreds of people, mostly women, on Sunday took out a protest rally through the streets of Guwahati demanding exemplary punishment to the culprits of the July 9 incident.

The rally mainly called by Assam’s farmers’ body Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti, was also supported by Nirjatan Birodhi Oikya Mancha and several other women and human rights groups.

The protestors also carried placards, which were written demanding a ban on a private news channel, News Live, for the alleged role of one its journalist in instigating the mob to strip the victim in public.
Scribe claims allegations ‘malicious and wild’

Private news channel scribe Gaurav Jyoti Neog, blamed by RTI activist Akhil Gogoi for allegedly instigating the molestation of a girl here, said today the charges against him were ‘malicious and wild’.

“ I strongly deny and refute the allegations as malicious and wild,” he said in a signed statement here. Neog said he had carried out his professional duties as a responsible journalist by asking for a camera unit from his office and filmed the incident to fulfill the social responsibility of identifying the molesters and get them punished.

He requested the management of the channel to relieve him of his duties till he was cleared of the charges and said he felt it was his responsibility to enable a free and fair trial. The channel’s executive director Nitumoni Saikia said the channel was convinced that Neog was not involved in instigating the molestation.