Power protesters attack Dunya crew, van

 JournalismPakistan.com |  Published: 19 June 2012 |  JP Staff Reporter

The Dunya TV crew was attacked while covering a protest in Rawalpindi against power load shedding. Their DSNG van was damaged, though no injuries occurred.

Summary

ISLAMABAD—The crew of Dunya TV was manhandled Tuesday and the channel’s DSNG van was attacked by a mob protesting prolonged power load shedding in Rawalpindi. The team had arrived at Committee Chowk on Murree Road, the scene of the protest for live coverage. The protesters attempted to pull the driver and the technician out of the vehicle. Both of them refused to disembark following which the protesters hurled stones at the DSNG, damaging its windscreen. No one was injured in the attack. There was no reporter on board. Such attacks on vans belonging to television channels are common across Pakistan. It could not be known if DSNG vans of other channels were around at the time of the attack. There were some who quickly linked the incident to the recent off-air footage of a Dunya TV program that was leaked and run widely on the Internet. The footage featured hosts Mubashar Lucqman and Meher Bukhari and guest property magnate Malik Riaz. The clips showed the interview with Malik of Bahria Town fame was a set-up as Meher admitted during the conversation that took place before the program and during commercial breaks.

KEY POINTS:

• Dunya TV crew attacked in Rawalpindi during a power protest.
• Protesters attempted to pull crew members out of their vehicle.
• No injuries reported despite damage to the DSNG van.
• Similar attacks on media outlets are frequent in Pakistan.
• Incident linked to a recent controversy involving Dunya TV's programming.