Sulthan Bathery (Kerala): Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)'s Kerala unit on March 12 charged the Antony government with "unleashing a reign of terror" against media in the state and said the "situation is worse than what it was during Emergency".

"The government is going on an all-out attack on the Press which is no more in a position to function in a free and fair manner," BJP state president C K Padmanabhan told a Meet-the-Press organised by the Wayanad Press Club.

Alleging that several lapses had taken place during the recent eviction operations conducted by police at Muthanga to "suppress the adivasi agitation", Padmanabhan said his party was of the firm opinion that only a judicial probe into the incidents would bring out the facts.

"Nothing short of a judicial probe will help in revealing the hidden facts," he said, adding government should immediately withdraw the case booked against a vernacular journalist as "it has only acted on hearsay".

Meanwhile, the bail applications of tribal leaders C K Janu and M Geethanandan, originally scheduled to come up before the district sessions court on March 12, have now been posted for hearing on March 14.

PTI