New York-based journalists' body seeks release of Kashmir scribe accused of militancy

Counterview Desk
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), an independent, nonprofit organization that promotes press freedom worldwide, which claims to defend the right of journalists to report the news without fear of reprisal, has accused the authorities in Jammu & Kashmir (J&K) of “falsely” implicating Kashmiri journalist Aasif Sultan on charges of “promoting militancy”.
In a letter to Governor Satya Pal Malik to drop all legal proceedings and set him free immediately, CPJ, which is made up of about 40 experts around the world, with headquarters in New York City and offices in a dozen other countries, has said, “His editor and family have credibly disputed these claims and say his work was strictly that of a journalist gathering news. No chargesheet has been filed.” CPJ has no office in India.
Sultan worked as assistant editor with the "Kashmir Narrator" magazine, and was held by J&K Police on August 27 last year and a First Information Report was filed under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, described by civil society a draconian law, following a gunfight in Batamaloo on August 12. Cops picked him up after a cover story by the magazine on Burhan Wani, included interviews with overground workers of militant outfits.
Sultan was asked, among other things, to reveal his sources of the story and why he had not instead reported on the government-backed developmental activities in the state. The arrest came even as India continued to slip in the World Press Freedom Index -- it was ranked 138 in 2018 as against 136 a year earlier, one spot below Myanmar and one spot above Pakistan.
A year earlier, in September 2017, another journalist, Kamran Yusuf, was arrested for allegedly encouraging stone pelting and mobilising people to pelt stones on security personnel. He was, however, granted bail after the police failed to produce evidence against him.
Recalling the murder of Shujaat Bukhari, founding editor, "Rising Kashmir", on June 14, 2018, Steven Butler, the Asia Program Coordinator, CPJ, who has written to the Gujarat governor, has sent a copy of the letter to Union home minister Rajnath Singh.

Text of the letter:

The Committee to Protect Journalists, an independent organization that advocates for press freedom worldwide, asks that you release journalist Aasif Sultan, who has been held by Jammu and Kashmir police since August 27, 2018, and drop all legal proceedings against him.
Sultan, a journalist with the "Kashmir Narrator", has been falsely accused under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. His name was included in a First Information Report filed after a gunfight in Batamaloo on August 12, and he has been accused of having contact with and promoting militants. His editor and family have credibly disputed these claims and say his work was strictly that of a journalist gathering news. No charge sheet has been filed.
In July 2018, Sultan wrote a cover story for the "Kashmir Narrator" on militant Burhan Wani, which included interviews with non-combatant members of Hizbul Mujahideen. Police have reportedly subjected Sultan to repeated interrogation during his detention regarding the article, asking him to reveal his sources and why he reported on the conflict in Kashmir, as well as questions on headlines that appeared in the "Kashmir Narrator" and why he had not reported on development in the state. Police have also objected in court to his Facebook postings.
We understand that Jammu and Kashmir is facing a difficult situation, but CPJ would like to stress that interviewing or having sources who are critical of the government is within the scope of a journalists' job and does not implicate them in a crime. Reporting on an important and newsworthy story such as the conflict in Kashmir is a public service, not a criminal act.
Journalists have long operated in a dangerous environment in Kashmir, and we are extremely concerned about the climate for press freedom. In the past year, CPJ has documented various attacks against journalists, including the murder of Shujaat Bukhari and the questioning and detention of multiple reporters for their work. Freedom of the press is a vital tenet of democracy and a proud part of India's history. We urge you to use the authority vested in you as governor of Jammu and Kashmir to help immediately ensure that Aasif Sultan is released and that the charges against him are dropped.

Comments

When democracy becomes a performance: The Tibetan exile experience

By Tseten Lhundup* I was born in Bylakuppe, one of the largest Tibetan settlements in southern India. From childhood, I grew up in simple barracks, along muddy roads, and in fields with limited resources. Over the years, I have watched our democratic system slowly erode. Observing the recent budget session of the 17th Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile, these “democratic procedures” appear grand and orderly on the surface, yet in reality they amount to little more than empty formalities. The parliamentarians seem largely disconnected from the everyday struggles faced by ordinary exiled Tibetans like us.

Fair prices, fresh produce: Vegetable market opens in Rajasthan tribal village

By Vikas Meshram* On 18 March 2026, the tribal village of Sajjangarh in southern Rajasthan witnessed the grand and dignified inauguration of a new vegetable market (mandi). Established through the tireless joint efforts of the Krushi Avam Adivasi Swaraj Sangathan (Bhilkuaan) and Vaagdhara, under the active leadership of the Gram Panchayat of Sajjangarh, the market is being hailed as a cornerstone for local self-governance, self-reliance, and a sustainable rural economy.

Study links sanctions to 500,000 deaths annually leading to rise in global backlash

By Bharat Dogra International opinion is increasingly turning against the expanding burden of sanctions imposed on a growing number of countries. These measures are contributing to humanitarian crises, intensifying domestic discord, and heightening international tensions, thereby increasing the risks of conflicts and wars.

Ex-IAS Atanu Chakraborty and a tale of two different Gujarat vision documents

By Rajiv Shah The likely appointment of Atanu Chakraborty as HDFC Bank chairman interested me for several reasons, but above all because I have interacted with him closely during my more than 14 year stint in Gandhinagar for the “Times of India”. One of the few decent Gujarat cadre bureaucrats, Chakraborty, belonging to the 1985 IAS batch, at least till I covered Sachivalaya was surely above controversies. He loved to remain faceless, never desired publicity, was professional to the core, and never indulged in loose talk. When he neared retirement, which happened in April 2020, first there were rumours in Sachivalaya that he would be appointed SEBI chairman, and then there was talk he would be chairman (or was it CEO?) of Gujarat International Finance Tec (GIFT) City (a dream project of Narendra Modi as Gujarat chief minister, which as Prime Minister Modi wants to promote, come what may). But, for some strange reasons, and I don’t know why, none of this happened, despite the fact...

Weaponised bravery, institutionalised cowardice as the engine of authoritarianism

By Bhabani Shankar Nayak* The insidious politics of crony capitalism is accelerating at an unprecedented pace, aided by the reckless expansion of artificial intelligence and other technologies designed not to liberate but to dominate, domesticate, and dehumanise societies. Alongside this, an illiberal politics of cowardice is emerging—serving as an accomplice to dehumanisation amid growing imperialist wars and conflicts across the world. Death in distant lands no longer stirs conscience. The push-button culture of digital screens has transformed social media into a disconnected, individualised, Hobbesian space, where the puritan pursuit of self-interest is elevated as the essence of human existence.

Moon missions and manholes: Development's drumbeat drowns out deaths in sewers

By Vikas Meshram* We proudly narrate the story of our nation’s progress. On every platform, we speak of the success of Chandrayaan , Digital India , and our rapidly growing economy. But behind this radiant picture lies a darkness—the world of sanitation workers who descend into sewers, risking their lives. This darkness is not confined to the drains alone; it runs deep within the conscience of our society.

Witnessing Iran beyond propaganda: Truth, war, and the path beyond western paradigm

By Naile Manjarrés On June 23, 2025—marked as the 2nd of Tir, 1404, on the Persian calendar—a ceasefire between Iran and Israel was announced. This "night of the decree" shifted the trajectory of global affairs; although the world may appear unchanged on the surface, we have yet to fully grasp its impact.

Best left-handed cricket XI of all-time: Could it beat an all-time right-hander XI?

By Harsh Thakor* This is my all-time left-handers Test XI. It could arguably give an all-time right-handers XI a strong run for its money, boasting the likes of Garry Sobers, Brian Lara, Wasim Akram, and Adam Gilchrist.

Dhurandhar: The Revenge — Blurring the line between fiction and political narrative

By Mohd. Ziyaullah Khan* "Dhurandhar: The Revenge" does not wait to be remembered; it arrives almost on the heels of its predecessor, released on March 19, 2026, just months after the first film’s December 2025 debut. The speed of its arrival feels less like creative urgency and more like calculated timing—cinema responding not to storytelling rhythm but to the emotional climate of its audience. Director Aditya Dhar, along with actor Yami Gautam, appears acutely aware of this moment and how to harness it.

Search This Blog