Protesting the arrest of reporters in the UP class 12 English paper leak case, journalists – under the umbrella of the Samyukta Patrakar Sangharsh Morcha – carried out a demonstration march against the Ballia district administration on Monday, the Dainik Bhaskar reported.

The journalists began their march from the Town Hall and passed Kaasim Bazar, Chowk, Station Road, among others areas, before assembling at the collectorate.

Ajit Ojha and Digvijay Singh of Amar Ujala, and Manoj Gupta of Rashtriya Sahara, are among the 34 persons arrested in the case so far. While police said the journalists were arrested on the “basis of their role”, at least two of the three journalists alleged that they were “framed for reporting on the paper leak”, according to the Indian Express.

Digvijay Singh had last week said the administration was trying to silence journalists for reporting the paper leak. “They are repeatedly asking me where I got the paper from. I have told them that I got it from a source,” he had said.

Anoop Hemkar, district president of the Shramjeevi Patrakar Association, on Monday said the administration is throttling the fourth estate, according to the report in Dainik Bhaskar. He said the authorities have shown their motive by acting against journalists who reported the facts when they failed to bust the mafia carrying out the paper leaks.

The association said it will increase the momentum of its protests if the administration does not drop “false cases” against the journalists, according to the report.