“The Shutdown Of The Kashmir Press Club Weakens Those Who Speak Truth To Power”

You have been our eyes and ears and you have made commendable sacrifices to the cause of Journalism and telling the truth amid fears in Kashmir. The ugly spat between two groups of media has pained many of us who are watching you from a distance. We want the cream of our society to come together and sort out differences privately or in hon’ble court, but not over social media.

It hurts to see our role models, our passion for the cause of journalism and whistleblowers unable to create a decent conversation over their own club. Journalists, especially from Kashmir, have done a remarkable job over the years.

Most start their careers from Greater Kashmir newspaper to network times-Global media. This intellectual class needs a vibrant press club where opinions, discussions and differences are allowed to flourish.

Media is considered the fourth pillar of democracy. Particularly in Kashmir, the fragile atmosphere represents both voices of people in the absence of political process and bridges the gap between the system and conflict-torn society.

Kashmir media is our cream class and the only intellectual space left in decades of violence. They became victims of violence and efforts have been made to silence the neutral space of journalism, but amid difficulties, they survived — navigated the currents, political pressures and fear from unidentified guns.

Many sacrificed their lives to uphold the cause of journalism in Kashmir. Shujaat Bukhari’s sacrifice is a recent one. We are living in a leaderless space and violence adds to anxiety and fear. The media has been the most significant contributor to peace and happiness.

It is important that the recent takeover of the much-debated Kashmir Press Club be sorted amicably by our intellectual class of media fraternity.

It holds true that the journalists in Kashmir are managing the reality of walking on a razor edge amidst the threat of unidentified guns and political arm-twisting. The unexpected control of the Kashmir Press Club (KPC) was intrinsically undemocratic and harmful as it privileges the voices of authority and weakens those who speak truth to power.

The free functioning of the Kashmir Press Club is important to curb the information monopoly. Otherwise, there will be unfair reportage, deafening silence and the voices from Kashmir expressing political space and democracy, alienation, anger and will merit to breach of trust.

There is widespread outrage over the takeover of KPC first, and then the government order to hand over the building back to the estate’s department in such a hasty manner. The statements from the Editors Guild of India, Mumbai Press Club, etc., only defines the seriousness of the matter.

A free and fair election held in democratic spirit will be one of the greatest contributions of the media fraternity to show everyone how our differences are sorted.

The Press Club was not just a club; it is a concept that needs to pave the way as a model space for our intellectual class and should become an eye-opener to those in political forums on how an idea of creating space works and sorts its differences. We need to preserve this concept and space by agreeing to disagree with one another and showing how a democratic way can sort what use of pressure cannot.

The press club crisis occurred at a time when problems could become opportunities. If this disagreement is sorted by our intellectual and selfless journalists, it will set a precedence for generations to come. It would be wise if the matter were resolved amicably instead of insulting or saying unfair things on social media platforms to damage reputations.

It looks like a deliberate mud-slinging campaign was created to fragment the media fraternity of Kashmir. May good sense prevail.

The author is U.S. Legislative Fellow-2016 and U.K. Bridge Institutes Kalinga Fellow-2020. He can be mailed at: umerwani99@gmail.com.