Railway police officers on the scene allegedly intimidated a female journalist named Saumya Raj who was working for the news outlet “Molitics” and was reporting on the Saturday night stampede at the New Delhi Railway Station
In a post on X, Saumya Raj claimed that the railway police had confiscated her smartphone and threatened to erase all of the information she had captured concerning the incident.
Who is Molitics journalist Saumya Raj who claimed New Delhi Railway station police stopped her from covering stampede news and deaths in viral video
Saumya who is a journalist for Molitics is originally from Bihar and after studying Hindi journalism from the Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC), she is now working in the media. She has always been interested in understanding feminism at the grassroots level, especially Indian feminism and wants to deeply understand and work on the conservatism, religion, caste and class based discrimination, gender inequality etc. present in Indian society. In her free time, she likes picking flowers and leaves, and gazing at the moon and stars.
She previously worked for The Mooknayak and News18 and was also a freelance journalist at Newslaundry. She did a three month internship at Feminism in India. She went to the Tilka Manjhi Bhagalpur University (TMBU) where she did her BA Honours, Political Science from July 2017 – August 2020 and was a member of the debate society there.
She then went to the Indian Institute of Mass Communication, Delhi where she did her PG Diplmola in Mass Communication., Hindi Journalism from 2021-2022.
रेलवे पुलिस द्वारा मुझे हिरासत में लेने की धमकी देकर डराने की कोशिश की गई ताकि मैं उन्हें अपने फ़ोन का पासवर्ड बता दूँ और स्टेशन पर मौजूद लोगों की आपबीती का सारा डेटा डिलीट कर दूँ। उन्होंने मुझसे कहा कि आप यहाँ से कुछ नहीं दिखा सकते, डेटा डिलीट करो नहीं तो अभी उठा कर ले जाएँगे। pic.twitter.com/KmkBfAW4qt
— Saumya Raj (@JournoSaumya) February 16, 2025
She said in a video, “Upon learning about the incident, I reached the spot, started talking to witnesses and others present, and enquired about the situation. During this time, railway police officials approached me and seized my device. They asked for my ID card and took a photograph of it. Despite showing my credentials, they refused to return my phone. The officials told me they couldn’t allow me to show visuals from the location and threatened to delete the content.”
Saumya Raj disclosed that one of the authorities suggested her to only act as though she had erased the pictures due to pressure from superiors.
Additionally, she stated that a female police officer told her, “I have seen what has happened here,” and gave her management advice. Please pretend that you are removing the video in front of them, even when it is incorrect.
Another video that Saumya Raj posted shows an official asking her, “Do you have an ID card?” “Which media card is this?” the official asks when Saumya answers and presents her ID. Then she says, “PIB card.” “Which media card is this?” the official asks, dismissing it.
नई दिल्ली रेलवे स्टेशन पर मची भगदड़ को कवर करने के दौरान RPF के जवानों ने मुझसे मेरा फ़ोन छीना और बदतमीजी की। मुझे स्टेशन पर मौजूद लोगों से बातचीत की वीडियो डिलीट करने के लिए कहा और रिपोर्ट करने से रोका। @moliticsindia#delhirailwaystation #STAMPEDE pic.twitter.com/zlyrV34n3U
— Saumya Raj (@JournoSaumya) February 16, 2025
On Sunday, the number of fatalities from the stampede at the New Delhi Railway Station increased to 18. The incident happened after some passengers slid and fell on others while descending from a foot-over bridge, according to a senior railway official.
The rush, which occurred when the number of passengers abruptly rose on platforms 14 and 15 waiting to board trains going for Prayagraj, where the Maha Kumbh is currently underway, also reportedly injured over a dozen individuals. Meanwhile, some accounts also claim that incorrect station statements were the cause of the event.