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"This is an attack on press freedom."
"It is an intrusion into the private spaces of media fraternity. It is like locking up a Parliament or an Assembly."
On Saturday, 15 January, the Kashmir Press Club witnessed a "coup" when a group of members removed its ad hoc body and took over control of the club, allegedly with a help from the Jammu and Kashmir Police.
On 14 January, a day before the takeover, the Jammu and Kashmir government had cited adverse reports by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of J&K Police and had suspended the registration of the Club.
The recent developments have "alarmed" the media fraternity and journalists in the Valley.
Whatever has happened is self-explanatory that the government does not want that space for journalists where they would work independently, and have a space to work together.Shahana Batt, Journalist
'Creating a Rift Was Unethical'
Shahana told The Quint that there was no need to do such a thing in an unethical and unprofessional manner. "There was no need to do it in such a way where you're creating a rift between a fraternity. It would have been better if they would have sent a professional letter to the press club committee asking them to hasten the process of re-registration," Shahana said.
"Closing down doors, locking the premises and handing over the premises and the building to the estates department is self-explanatory that government does not want free space for journalists to work," Shahana added.
I think the takeover of the press club was completely funny because since the inception of the press club there have not been any rival groups.Shahana Batt
'It is Like Locking a Parliament'
Riyaz Masroor, journalist working at BBC World, told The Quint that the closure of the press club is an intrusion into the private spaces of the media fraternity.
It is like locking up the Parliament or an Assembly. It is not an ordinary thing because media is the fourth pillar of democracy. So, it is the moral and ethical responsibility of the powers that be to uphold the democratic credentials and principles, and come forward and deploy their officials and open the gates.Riyaz Masroor, Journalist
Riyaz said that the police and the administration know who locked the premise of the club, and they can open the gates so that the journalists can have a space to work.
'Reminded of Renegade Age of 1995'
Journalist and author Gowhar Geelani said that this kind of atmosphere was last witnessed in 1995-96 when there was a "renegade age" in Kashmir. "Some suspended members, with the help of armed forces, came and took over the property in an uncivilised manner, in a renegade style," Geelani said.
"Just like a daylight robbery, they came and harassed the office staff, and now the space is locked," Geelani added. All the journalists who have been working at the club for past three-four years, filing their stories and were using their work station from there are now facing difficulty, he told The Quint.
We saw this kind of thing in 1995-95 when there was a renegade age and this also happened in the same manner.Gowhar Geelani, Journalist & Author
Geelani pointed out that the journalist bodies and other media fraternities have supported them.
The Editors Guild of India and the Mumbai Press Club on Sunday, 16 January, slammed J&K authorities for scuttling the club’s election process and helping the group in taking over the club.
The Mumbai Press Club in its statement asked for the restoration of the election process and the registration of the ‘Club’, while calling upon the state ‘to stop interference’ in journalist bodies.
On Monday, 17 January, the Jammu and Kashmir government announced that the allotment of premises to Kashmir Press Club at Polo View, Srinagar will be cancelled. Further, the control of land and buildings of the club which belongs to the Estates Department will now revert to the same.
The factual position is that KPC as a registered body has ceased to exist and its managing body too has come to a legal closure on 14 July 2021, the date on which its tenure came to an end.Department of Information and Public Relations, J&K
After the authorities took charge of the press club building and the premises, it is clear that the entire thing was orchestrated, said Shahana. "But if the government say that this is not the intention, then the journalist bodies are going to initiate the process of re-register," she added.
If the authorities really make things easy for the journalist fraternity, it will be really that it was not orchestrated. But as of now, to all of us, it seems that they do not want journalists to have a separate space at work, Shahana said.
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