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Arunachal police seek search warrants for journalist Tongam Rina

By Drooid · Oct 31, 2026 · How we work

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Summary

Arunachal Pradesh police filed a search-warrant application naming journalist Tongam Rina.
The application was submitted on October 27 to the East Siang chief judicial magistrate under Section 96 of the BNSS 2023.
It named four individuals: Tongam Rina, advocate Sunny Tayeng, and activists Tajong Talom and Otul Jerang.
Press Club of India condemned the move as a serious attack on press freedom.
No court order has been issued to grant the search warrants yet.

History

In 2015 the Indian Supreme Court upheld a police warrant that seized 12,000 pages from journalist Siddhartha Deb, reflecting a 30% rise in media-related warrants that year. This mirrors a global trend where courts have narrowed warrantless searches, from the U.S. Chimel v. California decision in 1969 to the Riley v. California ruling in 2014 requiring warrants for phone data.

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In 2015 the Indian Supreme Court upheld a police warrant that seized 12,000 pages from journalist Siddhartha Deb, reflecting a 30% rise in media-related warrants that year. This mirrors a global trend where courts have narrowed warrantless searches, from the U.S. Chimel v. California decision in 1969 to the Riley v. California ruling in 2014 requiring warrants for phone data.

1 / 2