Members of PCI & Independent Journalists Oppose PCI's Intervention In Petition For Media Freedom In J&K

A group of members of the Press Council of India have said that its Chairman did not consult them before moving an intervention application in the petition filed by Kashmir Times Executive Editor, Anuradha Bhasin, and have criticized the move. A joint statement was also issued by some seventy journalists and press agencies raising objections against the said intervention. The PCI has sought intervention as a respondent party in the petition filed by Ms. Bhasin, who has challenged the curbs on media freedom that were imposed in Kashmir in the wake of abrogation of the state's special status.Statements of members of PCI Certain prominent members of the PCI have claimed that the intervention application expresses views that may be personal to the Chairman, retired Supreme Court Judge, Justice C. K. Prasad, but it does not reflect views of the Council as a whole. "It was not in the agenda papers, and the Chairman did not even inform informally…rules state that any such decision should have been informed to the Council", a member was reported saying. They added that the Council last met on August 22 and the Chairman should've taken an endorsement that day or asked for voting on this issue. The President of the Press Association, Jaishankar Gupta said that the decision of the Chairman was arbitrary and the PCI could not be left to become a "tool of the government". He, along with General Secretary of the Association, C. K. Nayak, said that they were surprised that "the Council was not taken into confidence in such a grave matter" and that the Association had taken a serious view of the Chairman's "unilateral action". Statement of Journalists and Press AgenciesThe concerned journalists urged the Council to intervene in the 'favour' of the petition and advocate withdrawal of communication restrictions. "The Press Council of India's wording of the intervention petition in this manner is deplorable, completely indefensible and strikes a severe blow against the struggle of journalists from Kashmir to be able to report freely on the effect of the abrogation of Art 370 on August 5, 2019", the statement said. They said that the PCI was established to ensure freedom of the Press and to safeguard the rights of the media to fulfill its responsibility freely, without fear or favour. However, the Council had failed to recognize that the 'extraordinary clampdown of communication' in the entire region rendered the press helpless in as much as newspapers were not printed or distributed freely and journalists in the valley were unable to gather news, much less disseminate it. "Their movements have been hampered and their mobility severely restricted", they said. It was also pointed out that access to medical help in the valley was affected and many students were unable to get information on course and job applications due to communication shut down. "The government continues to claim that Kashmir is peaceful and calm. Yet, independent media organizations have recorded evidence of protests and expressions of anger by citizens but in the face of the ban on the Internet, the very dissemination of this news is threatened", they added. They also mentioned that on 9 October, 2017, after its visit to J&K, the Council had reported "The committee is really concerned about the stoppage of internet and mobile services in the State. In this age, no media can work without these supports. The policy of curbs on internet and mobile services has to be reviewed urgently… Journalists, too, are doing public service during any coverage and, therefore, their accreditation or Press Cards should be duly honoured during curfew or restrictions." However, the intervention application was in absolute contrast to the above position of the Council and it "Instead, conflates the issues raised by the Petition on the 'rights of the media/journalists for free and fair reporting on the one hand and national interest of integrity and sovereignty on the other' and seeks to assist the Court on the issue of the 'freedom of the Press as well as in the national interest'", the journalists continued. The statement lastly said that the intervention petition was contrary to the Council's "Constitutional responsibility" towards freedom of the press and the right of the media to 'act as the voice of the voiceless' and the Council should immediately alter its stand.Full Text Of Statement by concerned media persons on the Press Council's intervention application in the petition filed by Ms Anuradha BhasinWe, the undersigned individual journalists and media organisations, express our grave concern at the decision of the Press Council of India to intervene in the petition filed by Kashmir Times Executive Editor Anuradha Bhasin. The Press Council of India's petition has sought to be heard in the matter and does not unequivocally seek to protect press freedom. Instead, it conflates the issues raised by the Petition on the 'rights of the media/journalists for free...

Members of PCI & Independent Journalists Oppose PCI's Intervention In Petition For Media Freedom In J&K

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