Video Producer: Srishti Tyagi
Video Editor: Sandeep Suman
Cameraperson: Shiv Kumar Maurya
There has been a sharp difference between the reportage of international media and Indian media on Kashmir since the government revoked Article 370 on 5 August.
While international media showed protests in Kashmir, Indian media stressed on 'normalcy'.
On Friday, 9 August, Reuters, BBC & Al Jazeera reported that a massive protest took place at Soura in Srinagar, and that the security forces fired on the protestors.
No Indian channel covered it.
Republic TV’s Arnab Goswami called it "fake news".
“If it was fake news, a lie, a dirty and motivated lie by a dying, government-owned British channel, then I want to know and India wants to know - what is your intention BBC?” he said.
Troubling Details
The international media has brought out several troubling details from Kashmir which Indian channels have largely ignored.
For instance, Time magazine and The New York Times reported that over 2,000 people have been detained in Kashmir. But Times Now labelled many of the detainees as 'terrorists'.
UK-based newspaper The Independent reported that authorities are refusing to give death certificates for those killed in clashes with security forces. But no Indian TV channel took up the story.
American magazine Foreign Policy reported that security personnel forced Kashmiri civilians to chant 'Vande Mataram'.
On the other hand, India TV said that jawaans are working to keep Kashmir safe.
Reuters reported on the difficulties faced by local Kashmiri reporters but Open Magazine's Rahul Pandita ridiculed them and said that if journalists cannot find 5 minutes of internet every day then they don’t deserve to be journalists.
BBC and AP even captured on camera security forces taking away a doctor just after he complained of a shortage of medicines.
No Indian TV channel covered the story.
But there is news that foreign media did not report on the killing of truck driver Noor Mohammad Dar by a mob and murder of two Gujjar men allegedly by militants. These were widely covered in Indian media.
Misleading Information
Sections of the Indian media also gave misleading information on several occasions.
ANI presented a mosque in Jammu as Eid prayers in Srinagar.
Several publications carried ANI’s videos and photos without verifying them.
Many channels also showed a few Kashmiris interacting with NSA Ajit Doval in South Kashmir suggesting that they had no ill-will towards the PM’s key adviser.
But other media outlets pointed out that these people didn’t know who Doval was at that time
A few journalists presented one Mohammad Ashraf Azad as a Kashmiri supporting the government on Article 370 but they forgot to mention that he is a BJP leader.
By failing to report several aspects of the Kashmir crisis, perhaps many channels are following the Press Council of India chairman's mantra: "Some news is best not Reported".
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