Independent Digital Journalist | Earth Journalism Network Grantee | TEDX Speaker | Former The Quint, Bloomberg Quint, NDTV, Hindustan Times | ACJ

Chennai, India
Joined February 2014
Smitha T K retweeted
Ah the irony of Congress detaining people for doing exactly what their leaders are doing in Delhi
Many detained in Bengaluru, including @Aakar__Patel
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Smitha T K retweeted
For many of us journalists, John Brittas has become over the years one of the first people we call when we face harassment from the state. He has stood up for journalists and others facing oppression, and has been a strong voice of the Opposition. Today, he was dragged into a police bus while protesting, assaulted, and dumped on the roadside. Solidarity with you @JohnBrittas. If this is how the police treat an elected MP, imagine what an ordinary citizen faces.
Rajya Sabha MP John Brittas was brutally attacked by the Delhi Police. He was later dropped by the roadside, visibly injured and in distress. DELHI POLICE HAS CROSSED ALL LIMITS!
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Alarming: on the day the Supreme Court ordered the police to allow journalists to do their job, Delhi Police bundle a woman reporter into the van. This despite her and us repeatedly telling the police that she’s with the media, and showing her badge.
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Smitha T K retweeted
Onboard Goa Express in Itarsi (MP), police forcibly detained students travelling from Pune to Delhi to participate in the protests demanding resignation of chief election commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
Over dozens of students onboard Goa Express and on their way to participate in protests in Delhi were detained by the local police in Itarsi, Madhya Pradesh.
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Smitha T K retweeted
Ground Report | Protestors approaching towards Jantar Mantar detained at Cannaught Place. #CockroachJantaParty #Protest #JantarMantar #Delhi #Politics
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Smitha T K retweeted
Do watch this to understand the scale of police mobilisation today. People walking down the road are being picked up and put into buses. Journos aren’t being allowed to access the roads where these buses are stationed This is very different from what we saw during the July protests
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Smitha T K retweeted
Supreme Court: “no complete prohibition” on movement of metro trains, asks officials to allow metro, railway services to operate in a regulated manner. SC puts convenience of CITIZENS first. 'Not all have cars, pvt vehicles' #JantarMantar #Delhi #DMRC #CJP #GyaneshKumar
Big showdown as national capital is being turned into a fortress. Sibal to SC, 'All trains have been cancelled, metro stations are shut, people are being denied accommodation in hotels, and Nizamuddin has been closed. RWAs are reportedly being told not to allow people to step out.' #CJP #Delhi #JantarMantar
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🚨 TRAFFIC ALERT: Due to a major pothole at Tidel Park Junction, traffic diversions are in place. All vehicles (except 2-wheelers) coming from CPT are being diverted at Indra Nagar Jn. towards Indra Nagar Water Tank Road. Indira Nagar 2nd Avenue → Water Tank Road (Right Turn)→ Kalakshetra Road Junction (Right Turn) → Thiruvanmiyur Junction → Tidel Park Junction. Plan your commute accordingly. #ChennaiTraffic
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Raja Dileepan is no more. Not many would know him by his name. But many would have seen this image of a policeman standing on top of a vehicle in Thoothukudi, an SLR in his hands, aiming towards protesters on May 22, 2018. That photograph became one of the defining images of the Thoothukudi police firing. While I was reporting on the #ThoothukudiKillings, I spent days trying to trace him. After the firing, he had gone into hiding. His team was shifted to another district, away from the media. He was kept out of sight. I eventually traced Raja Dileepan. I was one of the few journalists who spoke to him. That phone conversation is something I have never forgotten. There was something deeply chilling about hearing the voice of the man behind that photograph and listening to him speak about what happened that day. Years later, the Justice Aruna Jagadeesan Commission recorded that Raja had fired two rounds from an SLR while standing on top of a police vehicle outside the Collectorate. The Commission also indicted police officers who were responsible for the firing. But even years later, no action has been taken against them. Watch this report: youtu.be/mC8lLKF9Jf0?si=iNn2…
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Attending the SIR meeting/people’s tribunal in Bengaluru and seeing the energy of the crowd, I couldn’t help thinking, wow, look at what the CJI’s stray comment set in motion.
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Smitha T K retweeted
Who can forget how @mehartweets, the daughter of a martyr, was viciously trolled, abused and hounded when she was in college for merely appealing for peace. More power to you Gurmehar for remaining unflinchingly strong.
दिल्ली में CEC ज्ञानेश कुमार के खिलाफ प्रोटेस्ट के दौरान कांग्रेस एक्टिविस्ट गुरमेहर कौर की पुलिस के साथ खींचतान हुई. इसमें उनके कपड़े भी फट गए. Full Video: youtu.be/6A-oRBSMuUQ?si=tqfG…
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Smitha T K retweeted
Nearly a billion people in the world’s largest democracy are being asked to show documents to prove that they should keep the right to vote. Our sweeping look at what is behind the recent fury in India -- and what is at stake. @HariNYT @CopiousNotes27 nytimes.com/2026/10/06/world…
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Tamil Nadu may be staring at an acute water crisis in an El Niño year, with water storage at major reservoirs across the state dropping to a critical level of 35.36 per cent of their total aggregate capacity.
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Smitha T K retweeted
For Chennai’s women, extreme heat is more than a climate crisis. It can mean lost wages, sleepless nights, water scarcity, worsening health and greater strain at home. In a powerful ground report, @thenewsminute unpacks how climate stress is deepening existing inequalities and, for some, intensifying the #violence they face. The story also highlights insights from MSSRF from the field, alongside findings from @MSSRF's 2025 report on the Impact of #Heat on the Health of Women in India. Read “Heat, lost income, and violence: How Chennai women are bearing the cost of a hotter city”: mssrf.org/mssrf-media #heatandhealth #climateandgender
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Smitha T K retweeted
It keeps getting worse. Now, the irony is that a digitisation drive meant to make fertiliser access easier has done the opposite. A new digital ID built on land records can't see the millions who actually farm. Latest on @DecodeInternet decodeinternet.in/labour/inv…
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There is a lot of discussion about the misuse of Form 7 and how it is being used to seek the deletion of Muslim and Dalit voters. But one aspect we should not miss is what this is doing to communities. Anjana met Muslim families in Hyderabad whose neighbour, a BJP BLA, sought their deletion from the voter rolls. He says he is only acting on instructions. But when someone you have known as a neighbour for years becomes part of an effort to have your name removed from the electoral rolls, it can fundamentally alter how communities see and trust each other. thenewsminute.com/telangana/…
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Smitha T K retweeted
#Watch | “They will have to do this. They have to do this to save Gyanesh Kumar and help Modi-Shah in the elections,” Neha Borah said, as the police detained her and political activist Yogendra Yadav at Jantar Mantar. Video: PTI thehindu.com/news/national/c…
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இன்று (11.09.2026) பெருநகர சென்னை மாநகராட்சி ஆணையாளர் டாக்டர் ஜி.எஸ். சமீரன், இ.ஆ.ப., அவர்களை, வியாசர்பாடி மற்றும் ராமபுரத்தைச் சேர்ந்த மாணவர்கள் சந்தித்து, சென்னையில் வெப்ப மேலாண்மை குறித்த தங்கள் ஆய்வறிக்கையைச் சமர்ப்பித்தனர். மேலும், தங்கள் பகுதிகளில் உள்ள பல்வேறு பிரச்சினைகள் மற்றும் அதற்கான சாத்தியமான தீர்வுகள் குறித்து கலந்துரையாடினார்கள். #GreaterChennaiCorporation #NammaChennai #HereToServe #ChennaiSchools #GCCStudents @CMOTamilnadu | @TNDIPRNEWS | @MawsTamilNadu
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Blue Flag beaches are sold as projects that benefit all. Developing beaches to boost local economies while protecting the environment. However, in reality, they benefit no one. Eco-sensitive land is concretised while communities are alienated. I report isignal.in/earthcheckindia/h…
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