'It's difficult to believe Jigna was part of conspiracy'

Arrest of crime journalist Jigna Vora has come as a shock for the media and also for former senior police officials.

Arrest of crime journalist Jigna Vora has come as a shock for the media and also for former senior police officials.

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There have been mixed reactions with some believing the police would have to present strong evidence and prove the intention behind her sharing details with underworld don Chhota Rajan.

"The evidence has not been made public. In such cases the intention is very important. Passing information with intention and knowledge or without them will be the crux of investigation," said YP Singh, lawyer and former IPS officer.

He added that this fact would have to be proved with strong investigation.

Former Mumbai police commissioner MN Singh, however, was not so surprised. "In the past there have been cases where journalists were found having close links with the underworld. But this is very rare," he said.

Senior journalist S Balakrishnan said that the arrest of Vora raises more questions than it answers. "If Chhota Rajan wants a dossier on anyone then he could have got it from his vast network of foot soldiers in Mumbai." He added, "It is difficult to believe that Jigna would have agreed to be a part of the conspiracy to kill a fellow journalist."

Ram Pawar, senior journalist and former president of Crime Reporters' Association, however, said that media persons have to be very careful while taking decision on how far they would go in making contacts and sources. "It is necessary that crime reporters should not involve themselves personally with their sources especially when the same are from underworld," Pawar said.

"The arrest has come as an absolute shock for the media," he said.