Modi's hidden emergency? Gujarat journalists under siege, face attacks, state suppression

By Dilip Patel* 

As India marked another anniversary on June 25 of the Emergency imposed by Indira Gandhi in 1975, it is important to reflect not only on that dark chapter of Indian democracy but also on the subtler, more insidious forms of repression that journalists face today. Much has been said about the press censorship and human rights violations during the Emergency, but what we are witnessing now in Gujarat is a hidden emergency—one that is not declared through official proclamations but felt on the ground by journalists who are being systematically silenced, harassed, and attacked. This undeclared emergency is more dangerous precisely because it wears the mask of democracy while undermining its very foundations.

As a journalist in Gujarat for decades, I have never seen such an aggressive and calculated campaign against the free press as what we have endured in the last ten years. Under Narendra Modi’s leadership, first as Chief Minister and now as Prime Minister, the state has evolved a toolkit of intimidation that includes physical violence, police harassment, economic strangulation, digital abuse, and legal vendettas. And this campaign is no longer covert—it is visible, brazen, and unapologetic.

Journalists who do not align with the ruling ideology or who dare to report on the ground realities are facing everything from arrests under draconian laws like the POCSO Act and sedition to online abuse from orchestrated troll armies. In one shocking case, Surat journalist Tushar Bamsara was booked under POCSO simply for reporting on a molestation case involving his own daughter. Despite the police initially refusing to file a complaint against the accused, they turned against the journalist once his report went viral. Rather than lauding his courage as a father and a reporter, the state sought to criminalize him.

This is not an isolated case. In Kutch, journalist Jayesh Shah was issued repeated notices by cybercrime police after exposing a police corruption racket. In Rajkot, Vadodara, Porbandar, Ahmedabad, and Botad, journalists have faced violent assaults. In several cases, the attackers have clear links to political or corporate power. Those investigating land scams, alcohol mafias, and local corruption have been beaten, threatened, or forced into silence.

Perhaps the most disturbing development is the use of economic pressure to dismantle independent media. Over 4,100 small and medium publications have shut down in Gujarat in recent years, not because of lack of readers, but because government advertisements—the lifeblood of local media—are selectively denied to any outlet that is even mildly critical of the ruling dispensation. This is financial censorship, a weaponized form of democracy where silence is purchased or punished.

Even established media houses have not been spared. Dainik Bhaskar faced income tax raids after exposing COVID-19 deaths and government underreporting. The Wire and NDTV have been relentlessly targeted. Independent journalists like Paranjoy Guha Thakurta, who dared to document the relationship between the Adani group and political power, face multiple court cases and arrest warrants. The message is clear: dissent will be crushed.

It is tragic that in the land of Mahatma Gandhi, where journalism was once a tool for national liberation, truth-tellers are now treated as enemies of the state. The state police, which should protect citizens, often act as enforcers for the ruling elite. False FIRs, legal loopholes, and procedural harassment are now routine tactics. Even digital journalists and YouTubers who operate independently face crackdowns, arrests, and cyberbullying.

The ruling establishment has ensured that no journalist is secure. Even when journalists are physically attacked, as in the case of Chirag Patel in Ahmedabad or Gopal Patel in Bapunagar, no serious action is taken. Many attacks remain unsolved, and in some cases, family members of journalists are dragged into legal trouble merely for association.

The press in Gujarat today lives in fear. We are being forced to choose between silence and survival. Those who dare to persist are labelled anti-national, corrupt, or worse. The digital media space, once a haven for independent voices, is now under constant surveillance and control. Even satire and investigative videos are taken down without explanation.

What we are seeing is not the spontaneous erosion of press freedom—it is its systematic demolition. The government has refused to pass a journalist protection law despite repeated pleas. In Maharashtra and eight other states, such laws exist. But in Gujarat, the state continues to operate with impunity, safe in the knowledge that there are no consequences.

I ask: if the press is the fourth pillar of democracy, why are its defenders being treated as criminals? Why is truth being punished and propaganda rewarded? If Gujarat is the laboratory of Hindutva, it is also becoming a laboratory for media suppression. How long can democracy survive without a free press?

This is not just a professional concern. It is a national emergency in slow motion. When corporate interests and political power align to destroy journalism, they destroy the people’s right to know. And when people can no longer trust the news, they can no longer trust democracy.

I write not out of fear but out of responsibility. The pen is still our only weapon. And as long as there are journalists willing to speak truth to power, all is not lost. But we must act—collectively, urgently, and fearlessly—before the silence becomes permanent.

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*Senior journalist based in Ahmedabad. Detailed Gujarati version of this article was first published here