New Delhi, February 2: Mandeep Punia, a freelance journalist, has been granted bail by the Delhi Court days after he was detained by police while covering the farmers' protests at Delhi's Singhu border. Punia was on Sunday sent to 14-day judicial custody, according to his lawyer. Reports infrom that Punia was accused of abusing a station house officer on duty at Singhu. Punia  was covering the clashes at the Singhu border, where farmers are protesting against the three farm laws.

On Sunday, a court in Delhi rejected his bail plea petition and had sent him to judicial custody for 14 days. Apart from Punia, another journalist named Dharmender Singh was also picked up by the police but was released on Sunday. Following Punia's arrest, several journalists in Delhi staged a demonstration in front of the new police headquarters in Patel Chowk on Sunday. Freelance Journalists Mandeep Punia & Dharmender Singh Picked up by Delhi Police, Claim Farmers' Leaders, Ask for Immediate Release (Watch Video).

Here's the tweet by Bar and Bench:

On Monday, the Editors Guild of India demanded Punia's release. The Editors Guild expressed concern over the action against Punia and said that his arrest was an attempt to muzzle the voices of independent journalists who were busting fake news.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Feb 02, 2021 04:46 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).