Masrat Zahra, a freelance woman photojournalist from Kashmir has been booked by the J&K Police under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act for allegedly uploading “anti-national” posts on her social media accounts. According to the police, a case has been registered against the photojournalist under section 13 of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UA(P)A) and section 505 of the Indian Penal Code in the Cyber Police Station, Kashmir zone.
Zahra, who mostly covers women and children in conflicts, contributes to several international publications such as Al Jazeera, Washington Post, Arab News, The Sun besides contributing to other national media houses. In the past, her work received accolades from various sections of the media.
On Saturday evening, she was initially summoned to the J&K Special Operation Group (SOG) headquarters, Srinagar without being told the reason, however, due to the lockdown, she didn’t go. “Since there was a lockdown and I didn’t have a curfew pass, I told them that I cannot come immediately. They [police] pressurized me to come but I didn’t go. They didn’t mention a first information report,” she told Scroll.in. However, later in the evening, she was informed that the matter has been sorted after the intervention of Kashmir Press Club and J&K Directorate of Information.
She added that she got to know about the FIR on Monday morning after some tweets mentioned that a Kashmir-based photojournalist was booked under UA(P)A. She said, “The police didn’t call me directly to inform me about the FIR. I came to know about it from my colleagues.” While talking to The Print, she said, “I am among the very few female photojournalists in Kashmir and have been working really hard to learn and to create my space for the past four years. They [police] want to silence me. They want to suppress me as I bring out the repressed voice and stories of Kashmir.”
In her support, The Network of Women in Media India has come out and demanded a withdrawal of the FIR filed against her. Moreover, Kashmir Press Club has released a statement condemning the charges on Zahra and it said, “This is unacceptable for journalists of Kashmir who are well within their rights to seek freedom of expression and speech as guaranteed under the constitution like other parts of the country.” This incident has bought a lot of criticism against the booking from various sections including journalists, activists and political parties.
The amended UA(P) Act can designate any individual booked under it as a ‘terrorist’ and can be imprisoned for seven years. Section 13 of UA(P)A deals with unlawful activities while, section 505 of IPC which leads to imprisonment for three years, refers to offences against any class or community that causes fear or alarm to the public.