Outcry after Kashmir Times office sealed

Jammu and Kashmir authorities have sealed the Srinagar workplace of Kashmir Times, one of many area’s oldest and most distinguished English-language newspapers, the publication mentioned on Tuesday. Political events and journalists criticised the transfer, however the state’s estates division mentioned the premises weren’t getting used as an workplace, however as a residence by the newspaper’s workers.

The motion got here per week after a home allotted to Anuradha Bhasi, government editor of the newspaper, in Jammu was re-allotted to the brother of a former legislator by the Jammu and Kashmir Estates Department.

“Today, Estates Deptt locked our office without any due process of cancellation & eviction, same way as I was evicted from a flat in Jammu, where my belongings including valuables were handed over to ‘new allottee’,” wrote Bhasin,52, on Twitter on Monday.

“Vendetta for speaking out! No due process followed. How peevish!,” she added.

Bhasin has been a vocal critic of the federal government over curbs imposed on communications when the Centre on August 5, 2019, pushed by means of constitutional adjustments divesting Jammu and Kashmir of its particular standing below Article 370 of the Constitution, and reorganising the state into two Union territories 0– J&Ok and Ladakh.

She filed a petition within the prime court docket demanding restoration of communications and measures to make sure the free and protected motion of media personnel. It was due to her petition that the court docket in January directed the administration of Jammu and Kashmir to overview curbs on communications each week.

On its web site, the newspaper wrote that its workplace in a authorities constructing in Press Enclave that homes a number of different newspaper places of work was “sealed without serving any cancellation or eviction notice to Kashmir Times or following any due process of law.”

“The Estates Department employees who came to the office to lock it out told the Kashmir Times staffers working inside to move out. When the Kashmir Times management asked for the orders, the Estates Department officials said that they had no orders and asked them to approach the senior officers instead,” it mentioned in a information report.

Mohammad Aslam , deputy director of the Estates Department, mentioned the newspaper was occupying two premises in Press Enclave, one in all which was taken over by the division “amicably”.

He mentioned the premises that have been taken over had been allotted to the late Ved Bhasin, founding father of Kashmir Times and father of Anuradha Bhasin, in his particular person capability and after his demise in2015, its allotment had expired and was cancelled.

“Their office is running in another quarter while this quarter was not in the name of Kashmir Times. It was being used for residential purposes by its employees and we requested for its vacation some two-three months back. Yesterday, they themselves handed over the facility,” he added.

Political events and journalists got here out in assist of Kashmir Times and Anuradha Bhasin.

Former chief minister and Peoples Democratic Party chief Mehbboba Mufti wrote on Twitter: “Anuradha was one of the few local newspaper editors in J&K who stood upto GOIs {government of India’s} illegal and disruptive actions in the state. Shutting down her office in Srinagar is straight out of BJPs {Bharatiya Janata Party’s} vendetta playbook to settle scores with those who dare to disagree.”

Another former chief minister and National Conference chief Omar Abdullah wrote on Twitter:: “This explains why some of our ‘esteemed’ publications have decided to become Government mouthpieces, printing only government press handouts. The price of independent reportage is to be evicted without due process.”

A gaggle of 11 journalists supplied their skilled companies free to Kashmir Times to assist its editorial crew in sustaining “the paper in these difficult times”.

“We are aware that Kashmir Times, and its editor, have been at the forefront of fighting against government curbs on communications and press freedom in Kashmir, especially post August 5 clampdown last year, when the majority of the local press was found wanting in reportage, choosing silence over speaking truth to power.”

“In view of these government-sponsored intimidation attempts to silence an independent newspaper, we express our solidarity and support to its editors and our colleagues there,” the journalists mentioned in an announcement.

The Kashmir Editors Guild (KEG) mentioned it regretted the sealing of the Kashmir Times workplace.

“The Guild sees the sealing because the continuation of an abnormality being enforced on Kashmir media for a very long time, particularly since 2010. In the final 10 years, successive regimes have created a really disagreeable historical past as for as operations of the media in Kashmir is worried. Preventing circulation of newspapers, blacklisting the newspapers from getting authorities commercials in Srinagar and Delhi, and interrupting negatively within the routine operations have adversely impacted the media. These are along with the problems that reporters face every day whereas gathering info, “ it mentioned in an announcement.