Mark Scialla, a freelance writer who has contributed to The Guardian, Al Jazeera and PBS, has been taken in for inquiry to the DSP's office by Thoothukudi police on Sunday morning.
A journalist from the United States who visited Thoothukudi to write about the protest against the Vedanta-owned Sterlite Copper plant has been questioned by the police on Sunday morning after he visited villages and interacted people allegedly affected by the industrial pollution.
Mark Scialla, a freelance writer who has contributed to The Guardian, Al Jazeera and PBS, has been taken in for inquiry to the DSP's office by Thoothukudi police on Sunday morning.
Murali Lamba, Superintendent of Police, Thoothukudi told DNA that Mark has come on a tourist visa but was found to be visiting villages and interacting with people.
"Our people called him for inquiry. Two to three days ag he had arrived at Thoothukudi but we did not get any information about his visit. Generally, whenever a foreigner arrives, we get information regarding their place of stay. When we came to know about his visit, we called him for inquiry about his visa," he said, adding that he was not detained but only called for questioning.
The police officer said that the next course of action would be decided after collecting further information about him and his visits.
Activist Prince Cardoza, who accompanied Mark Scialla to the affected villages, said that he was also taken into custody by the police on Saturday night for two hours but no case was registered.
"I accompanied him for translation purpose and meet the people affected by the pollution on Friday. On Saturday I took him to a village called Pandarapatti. Police called me for an inquiry and took me in their vehicle, but did not go to any station and they let me go after two hours," he said, adding that he did not hear from Scialla after he was taken to the DSP's office for questioning.
Last month, two French journalists — Arthur Roland Rene and Jules Damien — were booked allegedly for criminal trespassing into restricted areas belonging to Indian Rare Earths Limited in Kanyakumari district. The two journalists, who had come on a tourist visa, were doing a story on illegal beach sand mining. Two local journalists who helped them were also facing a case and have got bail from Madras High Court.
SIMILAR INCIDENT IN KANYAKUMARI
- Last month, two French journalists were booked for criminal trespassing into restricted areas in Kanyakumari.
- The two journalists, who had come on a tourist visa, were doing a story on illegal beach sand mining.
- Two local journalists who helped them were also facing a case and have got bail from Madras High Court.
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