After Doordarshan video journalist Achyutanand Sahu and two police officials were killed in a Maoist attack in Chhattisgarh’s Dantewada district Tuesday, chilling videos recorded by Sahu’s colleague during the incident have surfaced a day later.
In the video, Mormukut Sharma, a lighting assistant who was part of a three-member Doordarshan team that went to Chhattisgarh to cover the assembly elections scheduled to take place in November, is lying on the ground amid sounds of gunfire raging nearby in the distance.
“I might be killed in this attack. I don’t know why, but even in the face of death, I don’t feel afraid,” he said in the video.
Dramatic video by the Doordarshan Journalist Mormukut during the Maoist terror attack yesterday in Dantewada during which his colleague from national broadcaster along with 2 Chattisgarh Police Jawans were killed. Life of journalists working in conflict zones is very difficult. pic.twitter.com/JLdjDJUWOY
— Aditya Raj Kaul (@AdityaRajKaul) October 31, 2018
The videos have been shared by Republic TV journalist Aditya Raj Kaul. Sharma, who survived the attack, can be heard asking a police official for water.
Yet another video of the encounter site yesterday in Dantewada of Chattisgarh. Important to note that Govt needs to improve equipment and technological support to the district force as well as the CRPF. Forces too are sitting ducks in the interior jungles of Maoist corridor. pic.twitter.com/5pH0Joeds3
— Aditya Raj Kaul (@AdityaRajKaul) October 31, 2018
Journalist Dhiraj Kumar, the third member told PTI that he fell into a ditch when their motorcycle lost balance and Sharma also crawled towards him. “For the next 45 minutes, I just heard sounds of bullets and grenades. There were about 200 Maoists. Some grenades fell near us, but thank God they did not explode,” Kumar said.
A third police official who was injured during the attack died early on Wednesday, bringing the toll to four.
