Harassment of journalists in Kashmir continues through regular raids on newsrooms, the filing of FIRs, the seizure of phones and laptops, and heightened surveillance. In a recent incident, senior journalist Jehangir Ali, who works with the news portal The Wire, faced such a situation when police authorities entered his house without a warrant and seized his phone.
In a statement released by The Wire on Thursday, it said that on Wednesday evening, police officers from Budgam arrived at Ali’s home.
“Without providing a reason, let alone the details of any FIR, case, warrant or court order, the police officers seized his mobile phone. Contrary to directions issued by the Supreme Court to Central agencies and to universally accepted norms aimed at preserving the integrity of seized electronic devices, they did not provide Jehangir Ali the hash value of the seized phone. Recording of the hash value is essential for ensuring no data is added or deleted from the device while it is in custody,” the statement said.
Ali has been working with The Wire and has reported extensively on serious human rights violations from the region. Condemning the incident, the statement noted that Ali was especially targeted following his recent anti-corruption report.
“It is pertinent to note that the seizure of Jehangir Ali’s phone comes against the backdrop of his reporting on allegations of nepotism and corruption in the Ratle hydro power project in Kishtwar. At the time of the police raid, in fact our correspondent was in the midst of another investigative story on the project,” the statement added.
Mehbooba Mufti, leader of the Jammu and Kashmir People’s Democratic Party (PDP), also took to X (formerly Twitter) to speak about the incident.
“Allegations of brazen corruption & nepotism against BJP MLAs in the Kishtwar Power project was only recently brought to light by The Wire’s Jehangir Ali. Today it comes as no surprise that his phone was illegally seized. Journalism is dying in Kashmir barring stenographers who parrot BJPs narrative,” she wrote.
Journalists in Kashmir have regularly faced attacks and intimidation for their reporting. The seizure of phones is not new, but such incidents continue to raise serious questions about the safety and freedom of journalists working in the region.
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