Row over intimidation of journalists in Kashmir

Nothing new in it when we hear about the harassment of journalists in Kashmir but absolutely surprising and painful is the harassment of journalists on flimsy grounds amid fight against COVID-19 pandemic spread in one of the biggest conflict regions of the world now directly controlled and administered by the Home Ministry of the biggest democracy of the world. Kashmir Press Club very rightly said harassment and questioning of journalists in Kashmir on flimsy grounds by the J&K Police for their work is in fact a damning verdict on the appalling condition of Kashmir’s media fraternity. Asking journalists to report at police stations the time when they are moving to the remotest COVID-19 hit areas for ground reporting is highly objectionable. Journalists if allowed to work freely can identify the lapses in the patient care facilities at the hospitals changed into COVID-19 health centres and delivery of essential commodities in the remotest rural areas but unfortunately the summoning of journalists to police stations is obviously an attempt to divert the attention of people from the government’s lapses in patient care facilities at COVID-19 health centres and delivery of essential commodities in remote rural areas. Police actions don’t only speak volumes about the stringent curbs on media amid COVID-19 pandemic spread in Kashmir but also hints at the cover up attempts of the institutional failures of the government in the ongoing battle against COVID-19 spread in Jammu and Kashmir.
A news report is subject to investigation by police but an action becomes due only after a critical substantial evidence is put on record to prove the news report factually incorrect. Harassment of journalists on flimsy ground brings shame to the democratic institutions of the biggest democracy of the world and so hope for an immediate intervention by the Home Minister himself to see that police does not take actions against journalists on flimsy grounds just to silence genuine dissenting voices in Kashmir.
Such attacks on journalists should not have attracted public attention this time when Jammu & Kashmir police is directly commanded and controlled by the Union Home Minister Amit Shah himself. Journalists report incidents with the intent of attracting attention of the government towards the critical issues but not with the intent of flaring up public emotions for the purposes of disrupting public order and more so the time when people and the government are collectively fighting a battle against intensifying COVID-19 pandemic spread. Undoubtedly government has right to question the authenticity of factually incorrect media reports but it has no right what so ever to call journalists to police stations for the purposes of knowing the sources quoted in a particular news report. A news report is subject to investigation by police but an action becomes due only after a critical substantial evidence is put on record to prove the news report factually incorrect. Harassment of journalists on flimsy ground brings shame to the democratic institutions of the biggest democracy of the world and so hope for an immediate intervention by the Home Minister himself to see that police does not take actions against journalists on flimsy grounds just to silence genuine dissenting voices in Kashmir.