The Kashmir Pulse

SRINAGAR — The Jammu and Kashmir Media Accreditation Committee (JKMAC), chaired by Director Information J&K, Jatin Kishore, on Friday held a meeting to finalize the grant of accreditations in favour of news media representatives.

The committee reviewed and scrutinized the applications received from different news media representatives. A total of 412 applications were received, with 207 applications from Jammu division and 205 applications from Kashmir division.

The JKMAC has finalized a total of 262 news media representatives for the grant of accreditation.

It was also decided that all those journalists who are interested in getting accreditation with DIPR shall submit their complete applications to the DIPR Office in Jammu or Srinagar.

PULWAMA — In an effort to bolster communication between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the media, a significant interaction meeting convened at Town Hall Pulwama, drawing together district media personalities, journalists, and BJP leadership.

State spokesperson Rajni Sethi spearheaded insightful discussions, underscoring the media's pivotal role as the fourth pillar of democracy. Sethi also conducted a training program aimed at refining media outreach strategies, imparting valuable insights to the attendees.

The event witnessed a diverse assembly of participants, including district media personalities, journalists, top leadership from BJP Unit Pulwama, and BJP Media Incharge and Co-Incharges. Notable figures present included Chief Guest Rajni Sethi, accompanied by Zaman Noor and Amir Habib. The meeting was presided over by District President Mohammad Lateef Bhat, alongside other senior BJP leaders.

Throughout the proceedings, State Spokesperson Rajni Sethi engaged in substantive discussions with district media personalities and journalists, addressing pertinent issues and concerns while ensuring avenues for resolution.

Sethi reiterated the indispensable role of the media in upholding democratic values, emphasizing its function in informing, educating, and holding both the government and the public accountable.

Warmly welcomed by the local journalist community, Sethi led a training program during the latter part of the interaction, specifically targeting district media incharges. The session aimed at refining BJP's media outreach strategies within the district, offering interactive workshops and insightful discussions to equip participants with effective communication techniques.

SRINAGAR — The Chief Electoral Officer, Jammu and Kashmir, Pandurang K Pole on Saturday said that the media plays the role of watchdog for fair and transparent elections.

Pole during a training programme organized here for the media persons today highlighted the need for a check on fake news and the role of media in ensuring a civil discourse both during and after the election processes.

In preparation for the upcoming Lok Sabha Elections 2024, a one-day workshop for media personnel was organised at the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Darul-Intikhab here. The program was attended by representatives of major news outlets of the UT of Jammu and Kashmir.

The participants were briefed about all the important aspects of media during the election process including the spread of information, disinformation, fake news, media certification and monitoring committees.

The representatives were also apprised of the code of ethics for social media operations and regulations regarding poll day coverage.

Chief Electoral Officer, Jammu and Kashmir, Pandurang K Pole inaugurated the session and stressed the crucial role of media as a watchdog for fair and transparent elections.

National-level master trainers Chand Kishore Sharma and Riaz Ahmed Butt imparted training on several topics including media centres, restrictions of exit and opinion polls, enforcement of MCC and other regulations.

Chief Electoral Officer J&K in his closing address apprised the participants of various election-related aspects highlighting the need for a check on fake news and the role of media in ensuring a civil discourse both during and after the election processes.

He also emphasized the importance of maintaining good practices and transparency to ensure peaceful and fair elections.

AWANTIPORA — Faza Zainab, a distinguished alumna of the Islamic University of Science and Technology (IUST) Awantipora, has been bestowed with the title of Outstanding Media Person by the Jammu and Kashmir Administration in a ceremony marking Republic Day 2024.

The recognition comes as a testament to Zainab's exceptional contributions to the field of media and journalism after completing her Master's in Journalism and Mass Communication from the Department of Journalism and Mass Communication at IUST in 2022.

Congratulating the accomplished alumna, Prof Shakil Ahmad Romshoo, expressed that hard work and dedication are the cornerstones of success. He extended his best wishes to Ms Faza for her future endeavours.

Dr Mujeeb Liyakat, Head of DJMC, commended Zainab's dedication to reporting and insightful storytelling, highlighting that she has set a benchmark for aspiring media professionals.

As an alumna, Faza Zainab continues to serve as an inspiration for current and future students of the department, encouraging them to strive for excellence in the dynamic and challenging field of media and journalism.

The Jammu and Kashmir Administration's acknowledgement of Faza Zainab on Republic Day underscores the significance of her achievements and the impact she has made in the realm of media.

PULWAMA — The Press Information Bureau (PIB) Srinagar organized a thought-provoking media workshop today at Town Hall in Pulwama. The workshop, titled 'VARTALAP,' centered around the theme "9 Years of Seva, Sushasan & Garib Kalyan" and aimed to shed light on the government's initiatives and their impact on governance improvement and the welfare of the underprivileged.

Mr Tariq Ahmad Rather (IIS), Deputy Director (Media & Communication), PIB Srinagar, expertly moderated the program, ensuring a productive and engaging discussion. The workshop witnessed the participation of local journalists and esteemed government officials who shared their insights and experiences.

Mr Qazi Mohd Salman Ibrahim (IIS), Joint Director (Media & Communication), PIB Srinagar, delivered a keynote address emphasizing the crucial role played by local media and journalists. He elaborated on the government's efforts over the past nine years to enhance governance and uplift the socio-economic conditions of the underprivileged sections of society.

A presentation was made by Mr Majid Pandit (IIS), Media & Communication Officer, PIB Srinagar, where he highlighted the various media units of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. Through the use of a PowerPoint presentation, he demonstrated how these units effectively disseminate information and promote public outreach.

Dr Peerzada Farhat Ahmad (JKAS), ACD, Pulwama, captivated the audience with an extensive speech focusing on the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) and its positive implications for Jammu and Kashmir, particularly Pulwama. He shed light on the program's impact in providing employment opportunities and improving the lives of the rural population.

Dr Iqbal Khan, Chief Agriculture Officer, Pulwama, discussed the significance of the PM Kisan Scheme. He highlighted that Jammu and Kashmir boasts a significant agricultural sector, with approximately 13 lakh farmers contributing to the state's Gross Domestic Product. Dr Khan emphasized that the Agriculture Department is committed to creating avenues for both land-owning and landless individuals through various schemes.

Mr Rameez Raja, District Social Welfare Officer, Pulwama, shared valuable insights into the success of various women-centric schemes, particularly Self-Help Groups. He emphasized the government's efforts in empowering women and promoting their socio-economic development.

A representative from the Chief Medical Officer, Pulwama, discussed the Jan Aushadhi Kendra and the provision of free healthcare services through the Golden Card facility in empanelled hospitals. The spokesperson stressed the importance of accessible healthcare for all segments of society.

Owais Mushtaq (JKAS), Executive Officer (Incharge), Municipal Committee Pulwama, addressed the Swachh Bharat Mission and its 2.0 version. He highlighted the progress made in door-to-door waste collection, extending its reach to the Panchayat level. Furthermore, he highlighted the challenges posed by plastic waste and the endeavors to tackle it, such as the discontinuation of single-use plastics and the construction of community-level soakage pits.

Following the presentations, a lively question and answer session took place, allowing the journalists present to share their views and suggestions for improving communication channels between PIB Srinagar, J&K Department of Information & Public Relations and the journalist fraternity.

In the concluding remarks, Naushad Ahmad, District Information Officer (Incharge), Pulwama, expressed his satisfaction with Pulwama's progress in various sectors and emphasized the importance of effective communication between the media and the Information Department. He lauded the media personnel in Pulwama for their extensive coverage of government initiatives and success stories, effectively bringing them to the public's attention.

Mr Majid Pandit presented the Vote of Thanks, expressing gratitude to all the participants for their valuable contributions to the workshop's success.

SOPORE — A photojournalist working at a local daily has expressed disappointment that nobody from the administration called on him after he lost his eyesight in an accident nearly two weeks ago while covering the Srinagar Smart City development ahead of the G-20 Summit.

While speaking to the news agency KNO, Bilal Ahmad, from the Sopore area of north Kashmir’s Baramulla district, said he was “not merely an observer but an active participant” in highlighting the government’s development in the city.

Recalling the fateful incident, Bilal said he was assigned to cover the night view of the Srinagar Smart City. “After completing the coverage, I was walking alongside a path in the city centre Lal Chowk near a construction site. It had no lights at all. I suddenly fell into a water-filled pit where I remained for at least around 10 to 15 minutes, crying out for help.”

"My colleague also jumped into the pit in a bid to rescue me; however, he failed at once and at the same time, a Sumo driver passed through and rescued me," Bilal said. “I was shifted to the SMHS Hospital Srinagar where I received seven stitches in my ear. Besides my eyes, several parts of my body were badly wounded. My camera and cell phones were also damaged.”

"My family came to know about the accident the next morning and they took me to Kashmir Eye Hospital, Nowgam, where doctors informed them that my right eye has been severally damaged," he said. “The doctor told me that the loss of eyesight could be due to shock and stress and that I may recover soon.”

He added, "The next day, I was taken to the renowned ophthalmologist, Dr Ayaz Akbar Wani, HOD SMHS Hospital. He prescribed me medicines for a week and I was asked to go for an MRI, the report of which is yet to come."

“My left eye was already damaged in 2016 when I was hit by a pellet,” the devastated Bilal said.

The photojournalist said though his office and well-wishers helped him in the best possible way, the “saddest part” is that nobody from the administration enquired about him or came forward to help.

"It was because of journalists that people across the world came to know about the J&K Government’s development works, especially in Srinagar City, besides extensively covering an international G-20 Summit,” he said.

Expressing his anguish over the lack of safety measures, he said the incident should serve as a “wake-up call” for the authorities overseeing the development in Srinagar. "The incident highlights the critical need to prioritize safety measures, particularly around the construction sites and open pits, to safeguard the lives of pedestrians," he said.

Meanwhile, refusing to succumb to hopelessness, Bilal has decided to reach out to the community for support to raise funds for his medical treatment. The donors can send money to his bank account number 0068040100017027 with IFSC Code JAKA0MARKET.

“The vibrant world which I was capturing with my camera has been stolen from me. My dreams have been shattered and my spirit left in tatters. However, I hope to see the world again and capture it through my lens,” Bilal said.

SRINAGAR — A Kashmir-based journalist was arrested by National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Tuesday morning. The journalist in question is Irfan Mehraj.

Reports said that a special team of NIA from New Delhi raided his house in Mehjoor Nagar, Srinagar and arrested him.

The LinkedIn profile of Irfan Mehraj reads, "I am an independent journalist and researcher based in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir (India). My work has appeared in TRT World, Indian Express, The Caravan, Kashmir Life, Kashmir Reader, Greater Kashmir among others."

Suchitra Vijayan – the author of "Midnight’s Borders" in a tweet informed that Kashmiri journalist Irfan Meraj was arrested by the National Investigation Agency under draconian UAPA in Srinagar today. "He has been moved to Delhi," she said, adding that Irfan is a reporter and the founding editor of Wande Magazine.

An unnamed journalist, quoted by the news agency KNT, said that Irfan had worked at different media houses in Kashmir. He said currently Irfan is an Editor at TwoCircles.net.

Meanwhile, the news agency KDC, while quoting 'official sources', confirmed the arrest of Mehraj and said he has been arrested for investigation by NIA in case FIR No. RC-37/2020 registered at NIA Delhi.

The report, while quoting the sources, further said, “Credible information was received by the Central Government that certain NGOs, Trusts and Societies, registered as well as unregistered, are collecting funds domestically and abroad through donations, business contributions etc. in the name of charity and various welfare activities such as public health, education etc. Some of these NGOs have links with proscribed terrorist organizations such as Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT), Hizb-ul-Mujahideen (HM) etc.”

“Further, funds collected by such NGOs, Trusts and Societies are sent to Jammu & Kashmir through various channels such as cash couriers, Hawala traders based in Delhi, Jammu & Kashmir and other parts of India to sustain the secessionist and terrorist activities in Kashmir Valley, as a part of a larger criminal conspiracy hatched by these NGOs, Trusts and Societies etc., prejudicial to the unity, integrity, sovereignty and security of India,” sources said.

They further said these NGOs, Trusts and Societies and their members, by words and written means, publish anti-national and incriminating material to bring into hatred, contempt and disaffection towards the Government of India.

Pertinently, Irfan was questioned in this case earlier as well, sources said, adding that on Monday evening, the journalist was formally arrested and was moved to New Delhi.

SRINAGAR — Kashmir Press Photographers Association (KPPA) on Sunday condemned the latest 'pick and choose' policy of the Department of Information and Public Relations of inviting a select few photojournalists while dropping prominent photojournalists working with international, national and local media outlets.

In a statement issued to the news agency KDC, KPPA said that the department was working unprofessionally and extending invitations to only a few selected photojournalists while barring most photojournalists from covering official functions.

The KPPA statement said that ever since the change of guard in the department, the doors of official functions had been closed to most photojournalists.

The KPPA has urged Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha and the people at the helm of affairs to look into the issue and take action against the officials using the Information and Public Relations for appeasement policy.

SRINAGAR — Jammu and Kashmir Young Journalists Association (JKYJA) observed its 11th anniversary on Monday. It was on this day in 2012 that the working body of young journalists from the Jammu and Kashmir region was constituted.

“The idea of forming an association that takes care of the young journalists in the field came about as a result of the difficult situation that the young scribes face in many issues facing Kashmir,” said the founding President Ajaz Ahmad War.

He added, “While all the journalists are equally susceptible to the vagaries of difficult scenarios, the younger generation is more prone to be at the receiving end. So, it was mandatory for us to form a body of young working journalists, so that their problems and grievances could be addressed.”

He urged the government to ensure that all the professional news portals of Jammu and Kashmir, especially those operating for many years, are recognized.

JKYJA President Ajaz Ahmad War observed that JKYJA is doing an exemplary job and raises various issues on different platforms to address the grievances of young scribes.

JAMMU — Press Club of Jammu, the only elected body of scribes in UT Jammu and Kashmir, has appealed to the administration to review the list of formalities to be fulfilled by the journalists who desire to apply for fresh accreditation with the Directorate of Information and Public Relations.

In a meeting held here under the chairmanship of Press Club of Jammu president Sanjeev Pargal, the management committee has appealed to the Jammu and Kashmir Government, particularly the Information Department, to cut short a long list of formalities sought for accreditation of journalists, video journalists, freelance journalists and photographers, and all other categories.

The members observed that formalities asked for the accreditation of journalists should be cut short to facilitate the scribes to apply for it.

The Management Committee further observed that accreditation can be renewed in favour of all those who were already holding it when the annual renewal process was stopped by the Information Department as such journalists fulfill all preconditions and formalities.

"As far as the grant of accreditation to new journalists/photojournalists etc is concerned, a limited set of formalities can be sought and not too many which are beyond the compliance of many scribes," the Management Committee said.

The Press Club of Jammu was of the view that senior journalists including the Press Club of Jammu Management Committee, which is the only elected body of the journalists in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, should have been taken into confidence by the government as well as Information Department before issuing new accreditation rules and a long list of formalities to be submitted along with the application.

Noting that such a long list of formalities was never asked for in the past, the Management Committee asserted that earlier also the Information Department used to renew accreditation every year in March and grant new accreditations based on seeking a limited set of formalities which were easy to fulfill by the scribes.

The Management Committee expressed confidence that the Jammu and Kashmir Government as well as the Information Department, the nodal agency for dealing with media houses and journalists, would revisit the guidelines and act upon the suggestions made by the Press Club of Jammu.

NEW DELHI — Court has released a Kashmiri photojournalist, terming the charges against him by National Investigation Agency (NIA) as ‘mere assumptions’.

Muhammad Manan Dar, a resident of Batamaloo Srinagar, was released from the Tihar Jail after spending over a year in jail. Dar was arrested by NIA along with 12 others in October 2022, days after the killing of a few non-locals.

NIA had said that the conspiracy to “execute spree of target killings in the valley in October 2021” was hatched by Pakistan-based Syed Salahuddin, the head of United Jihad Council, an umbrella organization of militant outfits operating in Kashmir, Bashir Ahmed Pir and Imtiyaz Kundoo, residents of Kashmir who are believed to be living in Pakistan, and unidentified commanders of Hizb-ul-Mujahideen, Lashkar-e-Toiba, Al-Badr and other unidentified terror outfits.

The agency filed a case (RC No.29/2021/NIA/DLI) under sections 120B, 121A, 122, and 123 of IPC and sections 18, 18A, 18B, 30, 30, and 39 of Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 in 2021, and a chargesheet was filed in the NIA court last year.

Notably, militants shot dead at least nine civilians, mostly non-locals, in October 2021. These include a civilian Abdul Rehman Guroo from Galwanteng Chatabal who was killed by suspected militants in Karan Nagar area of Srinagar; another civilian, who was a PDD employee, identified as Shafi Dar was shot dead at SD Colony Batamaloo.

Militants also shot dead three civilians — Bindro Medicate owner Makhan Lal near Iabal Park Srinagar, Virendra Paswan from Bhagalpur Bihar at Lal Bazar, and Sumo president Muhammad Shafi alias Sonu in Shahgund Hajin area of Bandipora.

Militants shot dead two teachers Sapendar Kour and Deepak Chand in Idgah Srinagar. A non-local vendor Arvind Kumar of Bihar was shot dead by militants in Eidgah area of Srinagar. Another non-local carpenter Sageer Ahmed from Saharanpur UP shot dead by militants in Litter Pulwama.

Family sources confirmed the release of Dar, saying the jail authorities handed him over to the family in presence of his lawyer. The court had observed the charges against Dar are insufficient and ‘mere assumptions’.

In its chargesheet, the agency, citing witnesses and data recovered from Manan’s phone, claimed that the 23-year-old, who was selected to join the 2022 cohort of Integrated Journalism and Mass Communication course at Cluster University, Srinagar before his arrest, was working “under the cover of a photojournalist” to “share details” about security forces and their deployment in Kashmir with terrorist outfits.

JAMMU — The Government today constituted the Jammu and Kashmir Media Accreditation Committee (JKMAC) to grant accreditation to news media in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.

An order in this regard issued by J&K Government reads that sanction is hereby accorded to the constitution of the Jammu and Kashmir Media Accreditation Committee (JKMAC) for the grant of accreditation to news media in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.

As per the order, the committee will be composed of Director Information & PR as Chairman; Deputy Director Information (PR), DIPR as Member Secretary; Zulfikar Majeed (Deccan Herald), Fayaz Ahmad (ANI); Neeraj Rohmetra (Daily Excelsior); Shri Arshid Rasool (Daily Gadyal); Naveen Sharma (Dainik Jagran); Anil Bhat (PTI); Zahoor Hashmi (Daily Aftab); Satish Vimal (All India Radio); Pradip Datta (Times Now) and Ayaz Hafiz (Rising Kashmir) as members.

The Director of Information, Akshay Labroo said, “With the constitution of JKMAC, the long pending demand of working media persons of Jammu and Kashmir has been fulfilled, and very soon the process of granting accreditation to media persons of J&K will be initiated.”

SRINAGAR — Five journalists working for local newspapers in Kashmir have resigned after militant outfit TRF released a threat list against many journalists on social media.

Militant outfit TRF through its media mouthpiece 'KashmirFight' recently published a list of over one dozen journalists who were accused of working for security agencies and the army. The names on the list included two editors of local newspapers, a manager few cameramen, and reporters.

After the list got public, five journalists quit their jobs and three published their resignations on their social media accounts announcing their separation from the newspapers they were working since years.

Top police officials said that The Resistance Front (TRF), an offshoot of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) militant group, is behind these threats. TRF had issued similar threats earlier also targeting reporters working for national News Channels after which the government had provided security cover and secure accommodation to a few journalists working for the national media.

Top police officials said "The contents of the threats depict the intention of terrorists and anti-national elements. They have put the lives of people, especially media persons in danger by publicly calling them corrupt and giving a direct threat".

An FIR has been registered in this case and around a dozen suspects have been picked up who is currently being questioned, the police added.

In Kashmir, journalists have often been under threat. Shujaat Bukhari, Editor of Rising Kashmir, who was killed in June 2018 by militants, is part of over a dozen Kashmiri journalists who were killed for their work.

Since 2019, when Kashmir's special status was revoked, several journalists have been jailed and called for questioning by the police alleging they have links with anti-national elements.

The journalist fraternity in Kashmir had always remained forefront of covering the news in the toughest situation, but brazen is that no voice is alive to support this fraternity in their difficult times.

SRINAGAR — Five journalists working for local newspapers in Kashmir have resigned after militant outfit TRF released a threat list against many journalists on social media.

Militant outfit TRF through its media mouthpiece 'KashmirFight' recently published a list of over one dozen journalists who were accused of working for security agencies and the army. The names on the list included two editors of local newspapers, a manager few cameramen, and reporters.

After the list got public, five journalists quit their jobs and three published their resignations on their social media accounts announcing their separation from the newspapers they were working since years.

Top police officials said that The Resistance Front (TRF), an offshoot of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) militant group, is behind these threats. TRF had issued similar threats earlier also targeting reporters working for national News Channels after which the government had provided security cover and secure accommodation to a few journalists working for the national media.

Top police officials said "The contents of the threats depict the intention of terrorists and anti-national elements. They have put the lives of people, especially media persons in danger by publicly calling them corrupt and giving a direct threat".

An FIR has been registered in this case and around a dozen suspects have been picked up who is currently being questioned, the police added.

In Kashmir, journalists have often been under threat. Shujaat Bukhari, Editor of Rising Kashmir, who was killed in June 2018 by militants, is part of over a dozen Kashmiri journalists who were killed for their work.

Since 2019, when Kashmir's special status was revoked, several journalists have been jailed and called for questioning by the police alleging they have links with anti-national elements.

The journalist fraternity in Kashmir had always remained forefront of covering the news in the toughest situation, but brazen is that no voice is alive to support this fraternity in their difficult times.

SRINAGAR — Two days ago, Sarpanchs, several Panchayat members and locals held a demonstration outside the office of BDO Kakapora in district Pulwama against the unavailability of the concerned BDO.

Protesters, while alleging that the unavailability of BDO has brought all the developmental works to a complete halt, warned that if transparency is not brought into the Block, they will have to take legal action against the BDO.

The President of the Sarpanch Association said that after fixing the time for the meeting, nine Sarpanchs of Block Kakapora, including one Master, appeared here in Block Kakapora, but the BDO was not present there.

On being contacted by Mushtaq Ahmad, the reporter of news agency CNS, BDO Gulzar Teli hung up the phone in an unethical manner, saying that he knows what kind of news agency CNS is.

“When I tried to make BDO fully aware of the displeasure expressed by the Sarpanch Association and get an absolute explanation from him, I contacted him again. However, he hung up the phone, saying that it was a wrong number,” Mushtaq said.

Meanwhile, BDO Kakapora, Gulzar Teli while trying to mislead the district administration by issuing a false statement, also tried to bring down the image of the news agency CNS, which has been working tirelessly in adverse conditions in Jammu and Kashmir for the past 30 years.

President of Sarpanch Association Kakapora, Ghulam Hassan Pandit, said that he stands by his statement and demands that the irresponsible statement of BDO be taken seriously, in which he made the Panchayat community scapegoat and also tried to attack the structure of the news organization.

They also condemned the flattering statement of BDO and demanded that the district administration must take their demands seriously.

It is pertinent to mention here that two days ago, the news agency CNS published a news report of Sarpanch Association Kakapora from Block Kakapora in which it was stated that while trying to get BDO’s quote regarding the matter, he humiliated CNS correspondent instead of giving a reasonable answer.

Many political and social organizations in the valley have also expressed their anger over this issue.

Senior AAP leader condemns BDO Kakapora's behaviour

Political activist and senior Aam Aadmi Party leader Bashir Kakpori has expressed anger over the unprofessional behaviour of Block Development Officer Kakapora towards a news agency CNS's correspondent.

In his video statement, Bashir Kakpori has termed the attitude of BDO Gulzar Teli towards the reporter totally unprofessional.

"The concerned BDO is reluctant towards his official work and has been always in news for creating hindrances in the development works of the area," Kakpori added.

Meanwhile, Kakpori has urged LG Manoj Sinha and the district administration to take serious note of the attitude of the officer towards the correspondent.

SRINAGAR — Jammu and Kashmir Police on Wednesday said that a complaint has been lodged against a journalist for his alleged mischievous article in a national publication.

In a statement issued to the news agency Kashmir News Observer (KNO), a police spokesman said that many prominent personalities of Srinagar have lodged a complaint against one reporter of Caravan namely Shahid Tantray and his mischievous article "false flags".

“They have displayed apprehension that it is akin to giving targets to militant groups, something which has been done by similar articles in Kashmir Fight blog etc,” police said.

“In past, many personalities like Shujaat Bukhari have been targeted in a similar fashion when the names started coming in such cryptic articles. On the basis of this complaint, an inquiry has started into the real reasons why these personalities were specifically named in this article,” police said.

Shahid Tantray has so far not cooperated in the said inquiry, police said.

SRINAGAR — A joint team of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and the newly constituted State Investigation Agency (SIA) on Sunday raided the jailed journalist Fahad Shah’s office and his residence in Kashmir capital Srinagar, sources said.

Sources told Srinagar based news agency Kashmir Dot Com (KDC) that the State Investigation Agency is conducting searches at the residence of Jailed journalist Fahad Shah at Dawood Colony at Anchar area of Soura, Srinagar, his office “The Kashmir Walla” Magazine is also being searched by the joint team of National Investigation Agency (NIA) and SIA at Kursoo Rajbagh in Srinagar.

An official confirmed the development to KDC and said “The searches are being conducted in connection with cases already registered at SIA and NIA offices respectively.

The Jammu and Kashmir Police had slapped Public safety Act (PSA) on Journalist Fahad Shah who was previously booked under three cases from in two months and is presently lodged at Kupwara central jail.

Shah was first arrested on February 4 with police claiming that he allegedly glorified militancy, spread fake news and incited the people of Jammu and Kashmir.

The police had claimed that three separate first information reports (FIRs) were registered against Fahad Shah.

“Fahad Shah is wanted in three cases for glorifying terrorism, spreading fake news and inciting general public for creating law and order situations: FIR No. 70/2020 of PS Safakadal Srinagar, FIR No. 06/2021 of PS Imamsahib, Shopian & FIR No. 19/2022 of PS Pulwama.”

Fahad, who is editor of a local news magazine and portal, “The Kashmir Walla”, was first arrested in FIR No. 19/2022 registered by Pulwama police under 13 Unlawful activities of which interim bail was granted by the special court in Srinagar. He was then arrested by the Shopian Police in FIR No 06/2021 of which the Munsif court granted him interim bail in and was then arrested by Srinagar police . Jammu and Kashmir Police later booked him under public safety act and is under custody at central jail in north Kashmir’s Kupwara district.

SRINAGAR — Jammu and Kashmir Police on Saturday re-arrested journalist Fahad Shah in the third case after a local court granted interim bail to him in the second case registered at southern Shopian district.

An official told news agency Kashmir Dot Com (KDC) that Fahad Shah was arrested in a case under FIR No. 06 of 2021 under Section 153 and 505 of Indian Penal Code registered against him at Police Station Imam Sahab in Shopian.

Fahad, who is editor of a local news magazine and portal, “The Kashmir Walla”, was first arrested in FIR No. 19 of 2022 registered by Pulwama Police under 13 Unlawful activities of which interim bail was granted by the special court last Saturday.

Counsel of Fahad Shah, Advocate Umair Ronga confirmed that a local Munsif court in south Kashmir granted interim bail to him in a case under FIR No. 06 of 2021 registered at Police Station Imam Sahib in Shopian.

Sources told Srinagar based news agency Kashmir Dot Com that Fahad Shah was re-arrested in the third case under FIR No. 70 of 2020 registered at Police Station Safakadal in Srinagar and was accordingly arrested.

Police had earlier said, “Fahad Shah is wanted in three cases for glorifying terrorism, spreading fake news and inciting general public for creating law and order situations: FIR No. 70/2020 of PS Safakadal Srinagar, FIR No. 06/2021 of PS Imamsahib, Shopian and FIR No. 19/2022 of PS Pulwama.”

SRINAGAR — J&K and Ladakh High Court on Thursday asked Superintendent of Central Jail, Kotbalwal Jammu to "explore possibilities for making necessary arrangements" for examination of journalist Sajad Ahmad Dar.

In the application, Dar through his counsel N A Ronga had urged the court to direct jail authorities to make necessary arrangements for facilitating his appearance in the 3rd Semester MACJ (MA Communication and Journalism) examination to be conducted by the Central University of Kashmir. The examination is beginning on Friday (March 4).

“The instant application is disposed of with a direction to the Superintendent of Central Jail, Kot Bhalwal, Jammu to explore the possibilities of making necessary arrangements for petitioner’s (Dar’s) examination,” a bench of Justice Sanjay Dhar said as per GNS.

"Copy of this order be sent to Superintendent of Central Jail, Kot Bhalwal, Jammu for information and compliance,” the court added.

Dar was arrested from Bandipora district in January this year for allegedly “engaging in activities prejudicial to the sovereignty, integrity and unity of India.”