QUETTA - Balochistan Union of Journalists (BUJ) strongly condemned the manhandling of a journalist by police and warned that if action is not taken against responsible policemen within 24 hours it will stage a sit-in outside the Chief Ministers Secretariat. Addressing a press conference, President BUJ Abdul Khaliq Rind along with Vice President Essa Tareen and Bureau Chief of a private news channel Mustafa Tareen, here on Friday lambasted the manhandling and misbehaviour of police with senior journalist Mustafa Tareen and demanded immediate registration of FIR and constitution of a high-level committee to probe into the incident. Abdul Khaliq said media had not only covered the police activities impartially, but also raised the issue of increase in salaries of police with the chief minister and other authorities concerned. The BUJ president said media had rendered many sacrifices for its freedom and would not succumb to any pressure, adding until and unless action was taken against the responsible police officials they would not give coverage to the police and would hold protest rallies and stage a sit-in outside the CM Secretariat. Earlier, narrating his ordeal, Mustafa Tareen said he was on his way back home in a vehicle of a private TV channel last night when some policemen signalled him for search and started misbehaving after knowing that he was a media man. I followed their instruction, showed them my press card and documents of vehicle but instead of releasing me they took me to Brewery police station, and switched off my mobile phone, he added. He said in the police station they taunted him that media was responsible for the failure of police struggle for increase in their salaries. Mustafa Tareen said the police officials tortured him and used objectionable language before throwing him in the lockup and turned down his request to inform his relatives about his arrest. I was imprisoned for three hours and later on police official received a call and subsequently released me, he added. He said my relatives had contacted my fellow reporter Abdullah Magsi who reached the Brewery police station but he was neither allowed inside the police station nor informed about my detention. Chief Minister Balochistan Nawab Muhammad Aslam Raisani has also taken notice of the incident.