For more than five decades, the Mumbai Press Club has been a home for the city’s journalists. Founded in 1968 along with the Bombay Union of Journalists, it was built on values of honesty, independence, and public service in order to protect the dignity of journalism and the freedom of the press.

On October 25, that legacy of Mumbai Press Club was overshadowed by an altercation that broke out just before the screening of journalist Paranjoy Guha Thakurta’s film on electoral fraud with the title ‘Maharashtra Manipulated? How elections were stolen in India’s 2nd largest state’. 

The screening was attended by several senior journalists, artists, filmmakers, activists, and academicians such as Kumar Ketkar, Anand Patwardhan, Dolly Thakore, Rafeeq Ellias, Beena Sarkar Ellias, Simantini Dhuru, and Anand Teltumbde, among others. Several TV reporters from channels like IANS, India TV, Lokshahi and ABP Majha were there to cover the event. 

Before the film began an argument broke out between Samar Khadas, president of Mumbai Press Club and Rajesh Kumar, a reporter from India TV. 

The exchange was recorded and widely shared on social media. In the outrage that spilled online, Samar Khadas, who is also the political bureau chief at Maharashtra Times, a Marathi daily, became the target of a vicious communal campaign. 

He was attacked for his Muslim identity and was referred to as an ‘Urban Naxal’. The Press Club itself was branded as a den of urban Naxals. Ultimately, what began as a personal altercation between two men took on a deeply communal and political tone – one that the incident itself did not have.

Right-wing groups also accused members of the Mumbai Press Club for supporting a “dubious propaganda film” that undermined the democracy of the country. 

How it started

Harish Nambiar, convenor of film study club, told Newslaundry that the club has “always been a space for meaningful cinema. Though technically the Press Club invitations only reach members, we like to get regular citizens to come and enjoy the great and legendary classic cinema. They pay a guest charge and are allowed access to the club’s privileges for that evening. In recent years, we’ve also focused on documentaries that explore social realities, such as retrospectives on Arun Khopkar’s films and works by Suhasini Mulay on fishing communities across India and Pakistan.”

Samar Khadas does not attend most film screenings at the club. However, since this was a political documentary, he decided to watch it. Soon, the 30-seater hall began to get overcrowded. Nearly 70 people had arrived to watch the film. 

At the very back of the room, reporters and their cameramen stood with tripods. Given the space crunch and that the film was available online, Harish Nambiar, the film club coordinator, requested the journalists to step out during the screening and return during the question-answer session. “There wasn’t enough space for the audience. He told them more people were arriving and that the film was already available on YouTube, so they could watch it there, take the necessary shots later, and return for the question-answer session,” said Samar Khadas.

“But despite repeated requests by Nambiar they were not listening and kept saying they were invited.”

When asked who they were invited by, “they said they had been invited by the Congress party” and took the name of “Harshwardhan Sapkal,” the president of the Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC). 

That’s when Samar Khadas intervened and told them that “this is not a Congress party event, this is a  Press Club event. The exchange became heated, and yes, I too got agitated,” he said. 

A day before the screening, the MPCC had tweeted about it from its official handle. A few regional news channels claimed that the Maharashtra Congress chief would address a press conference after the screening. 

Rajesh Kumar did not respond to requests for comment. However, a source close to him said “most journalists” had not paid much attention to the announcement of the screening until the MPCC tweeted about and “made it look like a Congress-organised event”. “Since it was a Saturday, not many turned up, but Rajesh and three others from IANS, ABP Majha, and Lokshahi went there to report. They had set up their tripods at least two hours before the event began,” the source said.

The source said Rajesh was informed by his cameraperson that the “organisers were asking them to leave”. 

Paranjoy Guha Thakurta, the filmmaker of the one that was to be screened said that he was outside the hall when he heard the commotion. “One of the TV reporters said they had been invited by the Congress. But honestly, it shouldn’t matter whether they were invited by the Congress or the BJP. It was a public screening organised by the Press Club’s Film Study Group, and there was no restriction on entry. They were simply asked to remove the tripods to make space for others, nothing more. The entire fracas was unfortunate and unnecessary, it could easily have been avoided by both Samar and the camerapersons.”

An hour after the altercation at the Press Club, videos of what took place began circulating online.

“Soon, I started getting trolled on social media. People began using my full name Samar Mohammad Khadas to target my identity. Some called me an Urban Naxal. Trolls from both the BJP and Congress were attacking me,” said Samar Khadas. 

The online attack continued for two days. On October 27, Samar Khadas posted a statement with a caption that said “A curious case of silencing real reporters at Mumbai press club.”  

Referring to the trolling as “creative analysis” by pro-BJP handle, he explained his version of what transpired that evening. 

“What’s deeply troublesome is that the Press Club has always been a space where people with different opinions and ideologies can sit together, argue, and debate freely. What Samar did was wrong, but what’s being done to him now is completely unacceptable, vile, and dangerous,” said a filmmaker who attended the event and spoke to Newslaundry on the condition of anonymity. 

Ejaz Ahmed, senior journalist and former secretary of Press Club, who intervened during the spat between Khadas and Kumar, said, “What happened was extremely unfortunate…Yes, Samar Khadas did get aggressive, and that was unjustified. But it’s also important to understand what led to the confrontation in the first place. What’s even more unfortunate is the way the incident was twisted online.”

The hate

Right-wing online accounts began using Khadas’ father’s name – Mohammad Khadas to target his Muslim identity. Artificial Intelligence videos highlighting his identity also began circulating online. 

On October 27, Shivani Gokhale, co-coordinator of the BJP’s women’s wing in Maharashtra, tagged Devendra Fadnavis, Chief Minister of Maharashtra on X and asked “Who is really running the Mumbai Press Club? Why is an organisation meant to serve journalists’ interests being used to promote political party agendas? Who produced films that challenge the country’s sovereign institutions and for what purpose were they being screened at the Press Club?”

Further, she requested the Chief Minister to initiate an inquiry and “take Samar Mohammad Khadas, president of the Mumbai Press Club, into custody.”

Another X handle also tagged Fadnavis and said that “it’s high time the Government withdraws all support to @mumbaipressclub, including the grant sanctioned for constructing a new press club. In the last two decades, this organisation has become a platform for urban Naxals and anti-national forces.”

Similar narratives also began circulating in some common WhatsApp groups of journalists and Mumbai Police personnel. In one such group chat accessed by Newslaundry, a journalist wrote, “The Press Club has become a hub of anti-nationals. It’s now a centre for anti-national activities,  every day something of that sort happens there. Urban Naxals who are out on bail keep visiting. The police should investigate what’s going on inside the club.”

A police official, responding to the journalists’ comments in the group, said that he had taken note of the matter and would look into it. 

Three days after the event things took a turn. Vinay Joshi, a former RSS member and president of the Legal Rights Observatory lodged a complaint with the Press Information Bureau (PIB) PIB and Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. He sought to revoke the PIB accreditation card of Khadas and demanded an investigation. 

The same day, Joshi also posted on X and said that they have also sought “immediate action against all MPCC office bearers who were involved in dubious propaganda film solely aimed at discrediting India's democratic process and transparent election mechanism. Journalist Rajesh Kumar was manhandled by Maoist sympathiser Samar Mohammad Khadas as he debunked #VoteChori conspiracy. No MPCC member objected to Samar Mohammad's violent acts which proves they were partners in the crime. We will also seek @IncomeTaxIndia inquiry to find out who funded the said propaganda film!”

The X account Legal Rights Observatory also posted a photo of Khadas with a caption claiming that “Maoist” journalist Samar Mohammad Khadas attacked Rajesh Kumar for debunking a “propaganda” film.

Senior journalist Nikhil Wagle told Newslaundry that this entire episode is “nothing but an attempt to twist an altercation at the press club into a communal or ideological battle. Targeting him over his religion or branding him an urban Naxal is utterly wrong. The truth is simple, the club president misbehaved, and he should apologise. It doesn’t need to be turned into a secular-versus-communal debate.”

The Mumbai Press Club has not responded to the hate campaign. However, in a statement after the incident, it said the “managing committee is looking into the matter and take appropriate steps to ensure that such incidents do not recur. The Club remains committed to maintaining the values, decorum, and dignity of the institution, and to fostering a spirit of respect and professionalism among all members and guests.”

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