Journalists and photographers are the latest group to come under heavy fire in Indian-held Kashmir. In the former state which was split to form two union territories after the New Delhi government in August last year revoked Article 370 of the Indian constitution, giving the disputed territory autonomous status, a policy of harsh measures to quash dissent and suppress opposition to the move has continued without break. This has meant endless misery for the people of Kashmir, who have attempted to launch small protests in various places, only to be met with batons, teargas and rubber bullets. Last Wednesday, four Kashmiri freedom fighters were killed during an encounter with Indian security forces. In a press conference, DG ISPR Maj-General Babar Iftikhar stated that in 2020, there had been 848 ceasefire violations, with the Indian army using heavy artillery across the Line of Control. He noted that these appeared to be attempts, combined with the Indian government’s continued hostile statements, to divert attention from growing animosity in the Gulf States to violence in Kashmir and to other domestic problems.
Certainly, India has made a concerted effort to suppress the media. Journalist Gowhar Geelani is being investigated by police after being accused of glorifying terrorism. Other journalists, including freelance photographer Masrat Zehra, have been targeted under the draconian terrorism laws enforced in Kashmir for years and used more widely after August this year. Journalists have been forced to report to police stations to ‘explain’ stories they have published or are investigating, and others have been severely harassed or had their phones confiscated. The Editor’s Guild of India has spoken out against the actions being taken to clamp down on reporters in Kashmir and pointed out that publishing an opinion or a story on social media can hardly count as terrorism.
Sadly however, Indian authorities appear reluctant to alter their tough stance on Kashmir. The territory has already been crushed with many protestors arrested over the past months. Journalists who are attempting to speak up are now in the line of fire, and unfortunately have only limited support from other journalists across India. The mainstream Indian media is refusing to highlight the plight of Kashmir and generally, with a few grave exceptions, toeing the line of the Modi government. Kashmir has experienced too much trauma already. The onslaught on free expression shows New Delhi’s determination to ensure that the voice of the Kashmiri people is not heard. Quite obviously, journalists who write about the events in Kashmir are not terrorists. They are simply portraying what they see before their eyes. These scenes are grim and their stories an attempt to bring to the world the true happenings in Kashmir.
