“Such an environment of FIRs against journalists is wrong for them and not just them but for the country. It is harmful,” says ABP Majha journalist Mandar Gonjari.

The journalist in Pune has been named in an FIR after a dispute over a single student’s scholarship grievance escalated into a campus clash between rival student groups and a legal case against him. Both the FIR and the journalist now offer opposing accounts of who pressured that student to change her story.

Gonjari had on August 20 interviewed students at the College of Engineering Pune Technological University about their plans to attend Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s “Chhatron Ki Goonj” programme on August 22. Among them was Sampada Pramod Bade, a student admitted under the orphan quota, who told him she hadn’t received her scholarship for three years and was wrongly charged fees under the general category. After Gonjari’s report aired, Congress’s media cell used a clip from it to counter a claim by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis – he had said that students attending were from institutes run by Congress leaders. 

Gonjari alleges that once this happened, ABVP activists pressured Bade to publicly retract her comments, to say he had forced the interview and that her scholarship complaint wasn’t genuine. In a video released by Bade after the ABP Majha report, the student said, “We were actually manipulated and pressure was created due to which I said it… This was wrong. So I apologise to the college.” In another video posted by BJP, Bade said, “Please free our campus from political activities.”

As the controversy over the claim and the counter-claim grew, there was a confrontation on campus between ABVP and NSUI on August 21. And three FIRs were filed. In the first, an ABVP member accused the NSUI and Congress of assaulting ABVP members and pressuring the girl student to make a statement. In the second, the Youth Congress alleged that Bade was locked up in the COEP hostel by the ABVP and Congress workers were assaulted. In the third, the COEP accused the NSUI and Congress of trespassing on premises and posting the defamatory statement by Bade. This third FIR also claimed that Gonjari entered the hostel premises without permission.

Bade’s phone remained switched off. Newslaundry has sent her a questionnaire. This report will be updated if a response is received. 

The Pune Union of Working Journalists has condemned the action against Gonjari and submitted a request to the Commissioner of Police, demanding his removal from the case.

Gonjari, on his part, denies all the allegations and maintains that he did not even enter the hostel. He was also not the only journalist to have interviewed Bade.

India Today’s Pune Bureau Chief Omkar Wable tweeted, “It’s interesting that the same girl I interviewed was talking about how she hasn’t received her orphan scholarship amount and was also raising concerns about the fee hike at the college.” 

Gonjari: ‘Every party wants control’ 

On Thursday, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said in Nagpur that students from Congress-affiliated colleges would attend Gandhi’s Pune programme.

As per an Indian Express report, he said, “Instead of limiting his interactions to young people in colleges run by Congress leaders, Rahul Gandhi should interact with youth across the board. I have information that the Congress has invited only those students who are from colleges run by the Congress leaders. There are directions to Congress leaders to register only such students. Nevertheless, they are also our students.”

Gonjari then went to COEP, where he interviewed seven students, four women and three men, about why they planned to attend the event and what issues they intended to raise there.

The journalist said several students raised concerns about scholarships and hostel infrastructure. Sampada Pramod Bade, he said, spoke about not receiving an orphanage-category scholarship for three years, while another student spoke about problems in the hostel, including terrace leakages. He also asked the students whether they were affiliated with any student organisation, to which they said they were not. (Gonjari’s interview with Bade is 0:55 seconds onwards in the ABP Majha report.) 

The report was broadcast on August 21. Gonjari said the Congress media cell subsequently used a clip of Fadnavis’s statement alongside footage of him asking students whether they had any political affiliations, presenting it as a rebuttal to the chief minister’s claim about who would attend Gandhi’s programme.

Gonjari alleged that after the video circulated, ABVP members went to the college and pressured Bade to say that he had forced her to give the interview and that she was not actually going to Gandhi’s event. The journalist added that the student group pressured Bade to say that she did not actually have any scholarship-related issues.

Gonjari alleged that this was followed by a tussle between ABVP and NSUI members inside the COEP premises, which led to a lathi-charge and cases being registered.

Gonjari won the Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Awards presented in March 2025 for his reporting on how an undertrial allegedly operated a synthetic drug racket from his hospital bed in Pune.

Gonjari said he believed the FIR was connected to the circulation of his interview by the Congress media cell. He said neither the police nor any political party had pressured him to delete the report, and that his newsroom and editors had supported him.

He also said the episode reflected a wider problem for journalists in the country. “Such an environment of FIRs against journalists is wrong for them and not just them but for the country. It is harmful. If the correct information is not reaching the public, it is wrong. Clean and true journalism is important for this country,” he said.

“Every political party, be it BJP or Congress, wants control over journalists. But to what degree can you go for that control, political parties really need to think about this,” he added.

‘Interview recorded in front of college canteen’

The FIR, registered at Shivajinagar police station, names 100 to 150 Congress and NSUI workers and others and invokes provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita relating to unlawful assembly, rioting, criminal trespass, criminal intimidation, intentional insult and defamation, besides Sections 37(3) and 135 of the Maharashtra Police Act.

The complaint was filed by the chief administrative officer of COEP’s hostel department, who was authorised by the university to lodge the complaint.

The complaint alleges that NSUI and Congress workers entered the hostel premises without permission on August 21, pushed security guards and students, shouted slogans and created an “atmosphere of fear” among hostel residents. It also alleges that an ABP Majha journalist entered the hostel premises without permission and states that there was a “legal complaint” against him.

Gonjari, however, told Newslaundry that the interviews were recorded outside the college canteen in an open area during daylight. “We recorded the interview in front of the college canteen space. It was an open space and in daylight,” Gonjari said. The interviews uploaded on ABP Majha’s YouTube channel show they were recorded in an open space.

He added that other reporters were also present. “One was from Aaj Tak, who interviewed students as well. There was another channel as well. Even security was present there, and we were not stopped,” the journalist said.

Former PUWJ president Brijmohan Patil also took to X and claimed that Gonjari had not gone to the women’s hostel for an interview. “#Pune: Some people are blatantly lying that ABP Majha's bureau chief Mandar Gonjari #COEP went to the women's hostel at night for an interview. Look at the photo below. That's the COEP campus. Boys were also present with the girls in this discussion. Don't support false things,” he wrote. (sic)

The FIR naming Gonjari alleges that on August 19, NSUI workers prepared and circulated a video using Bade’s name “against her wishes”, claiming that the university had improperly charged her fees despite her admission under the orphan quota. The complaint says the university later learnt that it had “spoken incorrectly” and that Bade subsequently met the vice-chancellor along with other students. 

The complaint further says that on August 21, between 7 pm and 7:30 pm, students admitted under the orphan quota met the hostel administration and said their demands had been accepted.

It alleged that around 7:45 pm, 15 to 20 NSUI workers forcibly opened the hostel gate, pushed security guards and entered the premises. It then alleges that another 100 to 150 NSUI workers gathered inside, shouted slogans, and abused and assaulted students.

The FIR does not allege that Gonjari was involved in the purported violence or slogan-shouting attributed to the Congress and NSUI workers. 

Cops say ‘investigating’

ABVP has alleged that the COEP girl student’s video exposed the Congress and NSUI so their workers allegedly barged into COEP premises and caused a ruckus.

Speaking to Newslaundry, ABVP Pune Secretary Radheya Bahegavankar denied the allegation about pressurising Bade into changing her statement. He said that it was NSUI workers who had forced students to give statements regarding attending Gandhi’s event. He further alleged 400-500 NSUI workers entered COEP premises and attacked students. He said, “Sampada, herself, recorded the video and sent her statement. ABVP has no relations with the student. I am not aware whether the ABP Majha journalist entered the hostel or not.”

Akshay Jain, chairman of Maharashtra State Youth Congress-Media and Communication Department, who is also named in the FIR, told Newslaundry: “NSUI workers campaigned at COEP and other colleges to inform students about Gandhi’s event. Students told us about their issues and also mentioned the Orphan Scholarship. Gonjari interviewed these students - not just Sampada, but others as well who were facing issues with the scholarship. ABP Majha’s report went viral, following which the Maharashtra government released the scholarship money.”

“Later, ABVP pressured the students to change their statements and claim that NSUI had forced them to give bytes about the scholarship issue. If you see the news report containing the students’ interviews, it was very raw and organic. NSUI then demanded a conversation with the administration. We also asked to speak with Sampada, but that was not allowed. ABVP then got FIRs registered against our group. The first FIR was registered on a complaint by ABVP, while the second was registered by the college administration, which also alleged that the ABP Majha journalist had trespassed.”

“Please see the CCTV footage…we did not engage in any violence. ABVP attacked us first and also indulged in sloganeering. Three of our members were injured. This is a way of misusing power and suppressing the media.”

Police inspector Amar Kalange of Shivajinagar police station, where the FIR naming the journalist was filed, told Newslaundry, “The FIR has been registered as per the complainant’s statement. It only says that the complaint is also against an ABP Majha journalist. The police are investigating the matter.” 

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