At least 10 journalists were injured as ruling party activists allegedly attacked a motel in a central Bangladesh town when they were covering this week’s national election, a senior journalist said Tuesday.

A group of baton-wielding men attacked the motel in Nawabganj town late Monday, where journalists from several local media were staying overnight, Masud Karim, a special correspondent of the Bengali national daily Jugantor said.

“The miscreants vandalized 16 cars. At least 10 journalists from Jugantor and Jamuna TV were injured during the attack,” he told AFP, alleging the police delayed responding to their distress call.

The newspaper also said one of its reporters has been missing since Monday evening.

It blamed the student and youth wings of the ruling Awami League party for the attack, although police said they did not know the identity of the attackers.

“We rescued them (the journalists) from the situation,” district police chief S.M Shafiur Rahman told AFP, rejecting the allegations police did not respond to the attack in time.

Source: AFP