Mumbai Police have arrested 17 Shiv Sena activists for the attacks on the offices of IBN TV news channels in Mumbai and Pune as journalists staged a protest on Saturday and urged the Chief Minister to bring the guilty to book.

The accused, held for attacking IBN offices in Vikhroli, a Mumbai suburb,on Friday,were remanded to two-day police custody by the Vikhroli court.

Police are on the lookout for five more involved in the attack, including Sena MP Sanjay Raut’s younger brother Sunil, as they suspect he incited the attackers. Sunil was the Sena candidate in the Assembly elections from Bhandup and lost to MNS leader Shishir Shinde. “We have declared him as wanted at this stage,” said Rajkumar Whatkar, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone VII).

“There does not seem to be any immediate provocation for the attacks, but yes they seem to have an impression of hurt over the portrayal of the party in the follow-up to the election and also in the recent debate over the comments of Sachin Tendulkar and Sena chief Bal Thackeray’s reaction to the same,” said Whatkar.

A delegation of media representatives led by CNN IBN editor-in-chief Rajdeep Sardesai met CM Ashok Chavan at his residence asking for tough action against all those involved in the attack. Chavan said the government would appoint a Cabinet minister to the committee looking into the attacks on media and also gave an assurance that the government would examine the legal aspects of making attacks on media persons a non-bailable offence.

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