SRINAGAR: The government has blocked the website of Srinagar based news outlet The Kashmir Walla along with all its associated social media platforms, the outlet said in a statement. The decision comes more than 18 months after the arrest of the publication’s Editor, Fahad Shah.
In a statement issued by The Kashmir Walla, the editorial team expressed their anguish over the sudden censorship, stating, “This opaque censorship is gut-wrenching. There isn’t a lot left for us to say anymore.”
Statement: When we contacted The Kashmir Walla’s server provider to ask why https://t.co/zniqt5p3zU was inaccessible, they informed us that our website has been blocked in India by the MEITY under the IT Act, 2000. pic.twitter.com/3FOwFEJwVU
— yashraj sharma (@yashjournals) August 20, 2023
“For the past 18 months, however, we’ve lived a horrifying nightmare – with the arrest and imprisonment of our founder-editor, Fahad Shah, and the harassment of our reporters and staff, amid an already inhospitable climate for journalism in the region,” the statement read.
It was on Saturday, August 19, 2023, when the staff found their website inaccessible.
According to their server provider, thekashmirwalla.com had been blocked in India under the IT Act, 2000. Simultaneously, the publication’s Facebook page, boasting nearly half a million followers, was removed, along with their Twitter account, “in response to a legal demand.”
Adding to their difficulties, the statement said the staff received an eviction notice from their Srinagar office’s landlord, and they are currently in the process of vacating their workspace.
“Fahad Shah, our founder-editor, was arrested in February 2022 over the coverage of a gunfight. It was the beginning of the saga of his revolving door arrests. He went on to be arrested five times within four months. Three FIRs under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and one Public Safety Act have been registered against him,” the statement said. “In April 2022, the State Investigation Agency (SIA) raided our office and Shah’s home in Srinagar for an investigation into an opinion piece published 11 years ago, in 2011. During the raid, most of our gadgets were seized, reporters were interrogated, and all documents were scrutinized. Since then, our interim editor has been summoned and questioned by the SIA multiple times. Shah remains imprisoned in this case in Jammu’s Kot Bhalwal jail – 300 kms away from home.”
It said Sajad Gul, who worked briefly with with the newspaper as a trainee reporter, remains in a prison in Uttar Pradesh under the Public Safety Act. He was initially arrested in January 2022.
The staff remains uninformed about the reasons behind the blocking of their website and the removal of their social media accounts. “We are not aware of the specifics of why our website has been blocked in India; why our Facebook page has been removed; and why our Twitter account has been withheld. We have not been served any notice nor is there any official order regarding these actions that is in the public domain so far,” the KW staff said.
Former Chief Minister and PDP Chief, Mehbooba Mufti, has strongly condemned government’s decision to block the website and social media accounts of The Kashmir Walla.
What a shame. One of the few portals that dared to speak truth to power stands silenced. Fahad Shah continues to be incarcerated for his truthful reportage highlighting ground realities in J&K. Only godi media parroting GOIs narrative & propaganda is allowed to function &… https://t.co/I1oELj9cSV
— Mehbooba Mufti (@MehboobaMufti) August 20, 2023
In a tweet, Mufti expressed her dismay and concern, saying, “What a shame. One of the few portals that dared to speak truth to power stands silenced. Fahad Shah continues to be incarcerated for his truthful reportage highlighting ground realities in J&K. Only godi media parroting GOI’s narrative & propaganda is allowed to function & flourish.”
