Lucknow, June 18: Journalist Supriya Sharma, who compiled a series of reports on alleged lockdown woes in eastern Uttar Pradesh, was booked by the UP Police under several provisions. The case against her was based on the complaint of one Mala Devi, a resident of Domariya village in Varanasi district. 'Armchair Intellectuals' Acting as 'Prophets of Doom', Spreading Negativity, SG Complains to SC.

Devi alleged that Sharma misquoted her and projected her as a victim of extreme hunger and poverty - which is not the case. Based on her complaint, an FIR was registered against the scribe on June 13.

The UP police has booked Sharma under provisions of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Act, the IPC section 501 related to defamation and section 269 for acting negligently to "spread infection of disease".

Incidentally, Domariya - the village where complainant Mala resides - is a village of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The accused journalist in a report published in the Scroll.in on June 5 alleged that the public distribution system (PDS) malfunction, which forced Mala to undergo extreme hunger and even beg for food.

Scroll.in has defended the journalist and issued a statement to concede that a case has been registered. The website noted that the case is based on a report titled 'In Varanasi village adopted by Prime Minister Modi, people went hungry during the lockdown'. The story was published on June 5, 2020.

"Scroll.in stands by the article, which has been reported from the Prime Minister's constituency. This FIR is an attempt to intimidate and silence independent journalism, reporting on conditions of vulnerable groups during the COVID-19 lockdown," the publication said in its statement.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 18, 2020 11:10 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).