The Editors Guild of India Saturday strongly condemned the attacks on offices of the Mumbai-based Marathi channel IBN-Lokmat allegedly by Shiv Sena activists and said it was an assault on journalists' right to expression.

'The attacks on the news channel cannot just be dismissed as an act of mere vandalism. It is an attack on the entire journalistic community, their right to expression and is a vicious and savage assault on all norms of civilized behaviour,' the guild said in a statement.

Shiv Sena activists Friday vandalised the offices of the IBN-Lokmat television channel in north-east Mumbai and in Pune and assaulted journalists to protest the alleged misquoting of party chief Bal Thackeray's remarks on cricketer Sachin Tendulkar. The attack has drawn condemnation from all quarters.

The guild noted that the attacks suggested that the deterrence factor in a law abiding society had completely gone missing.

'Such brutal attacks continue to happen because the state governments have failed to act against the ring-leaders behind such violence,' the statement said.

'The guild demands the government not only ensure harshest possible legal punishment for the mob which attacked the office, but also ensure full justice is done by ensuring the masterminds behind such acts be brought to book as well.'

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