Police Raid on Journalist Jasodanand: Khushal Lobine to Question the PM about the Instigator

A police raid that led to the arrest of journalist Narain Jasodanand from Scoop.mu will be the subject of a parliamentary question this Tuesday, October 7. Majority MP Khushal Lobine will seek explanations from Prime Minister Navin Ramgoolam regarding the search conducted by the Cybercrime Unit in Floréal on September 12.

The parliamentarian wants to know the source of the instructions for this operation and whether the head of government has an independent report on these incidents. The raid is part of a defamation complaint filed by Tevin Sithanen, son of Rama Sithanen, on September 11.

The police intervention has sparked outrage. The journalist recounted the events: "Three big men knocked hard on the door. When I opened, they came in, used some brutality, pushed me on the bed, and started questioning. My phone fell and broke... Four or five men pushed me down the stairs to take me to the Central Barracks."

In response to the uproar, Prime Minister Navin Ramgoolam and Deputy Prime Minister Paul Bérenger publicly condemned the methods of the Cybercrime Unit, based at the headquarters of the Central Criminal Investigation Department (CCID). On Wednesday, October 1, sanctions were imposed: five police officers from the unit—one inspector, two sergeants, and two constables—and one superintendent from the CCID were reassigned to other divisions.

While the direct responsibility for some of the transfers remains debated, many voices are calling for an independent investigation to determine the role of high-ranking officials who ordered the operation. From the Central Barracks, it is noted that these transfers fall under the prerogatives of the police commissioner.