Kashmir Times Condemns SIA Raids, Calls Allegations \u201cAttack on Press Freedom\u201d
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\nThe editors of Kashmir Times have strongly denounced recent raids by the State Investigation Agency (SIA) on their office, describing allegations that the newspaper was involved in activities \u201cinimical to the state\u201d as baseless and politically motivated, Maktoob Media reported.<\/p>\n
In a statement issued on Thursday, the newspaper called the raids part of a \u201ccoordinated crackdown\u201d on one of Jammu and Kashmir\u2019s oldest publications. The editors emphasized that \u201ccriticising the government is not the same as being inimical to the state\u201d and that a questioning press \u201cstrengthens our nation. It does not weaken it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Official sources reported that a case has been registered against the newspaper and its editor, prominent journalist and author Anuradha Bhasin, to investigate alleged links and activities that purportedly \u201cthreaten the sovereignty\u201d of India.<\/p>\n
The move has drawn widespread condemnation from activists and journalists. Senior journalist Suhasini Haidar of The Hindu wrote, \u201cDemocracy dies in darkness\u2026and in silence against such patently politically motivated raids.\u201d<\/p>\n
Founded in 1954 by editor Ved Bhasin, Kashmir Times has a long history of documenting political developments, governance failures, and the voices of marginalized communities. The newspaper stated that it is being targeted because of its commitment to \u201cspeak truth to power\u201d amid increasing pressures on independent media in the region.<\/p>\n
The editors, Prabodh Jamwal and Anuradha Bhasin, called on authorities to halt harassment, withdraw the allegations, and uphold constitutional guarantees of press freedom. They urged civil society and fellow journalists to defend independent media, noting that while the print edition was suspended in 2021\u201322, the newspaper continues to operate digitally with all reporting publicly accessible on its website.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Kashmir Times Condemns SIA Raids, Calls Allegations \u201cAttack on Press Freedom\u201d ————————————- The editors of Kashmir Times have strongly denounced recent raids by the State Investigation Agency (SIA) on their office, describing allegations that the newspaper was involved in activities \u201cinimical to the state\u201d as baseless and politically motivated, Maktoob Media reported. In a statement …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":137079,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_108372464460192_245495985553329":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[5973],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-137080","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-kashmir"],"yoast_head":"\n