J&K newspaper office raided for ‘anti-national’ acts; arms seized

The State Investigation Agency (SIA) on Thursday raided the premises of one of the oldest newspapers of J&K — Kashmir Times — for allegedly promoting activities “against the nation” and seized a revolver, live AK rounds and grenade safety levers among other ammunition.

The office of the newspaper is located on Residency Road in Old Jammu City.

An official of the SIA said a revolver, 14 empty cases of AK series weapons, three live AK rounds and three safety levers of grenades were seized from the premises.

The official said all items were seized on the spot following due legal procedure. “These recoveries indicate possible unlawful possession and suspected linkages with extremist or anti-national elements, warranting further detailed investigation. The search of the house of Prabodh Jamwal, the owner of the media house, situated at Gandhi Nagar, Jammu, was also conducted in pursuance of the same investigation” the official said.

The official said the seized arms, ammunition, digital devices and documents would undergo forensic and technical examination to determine their origin, purpose and any potential connections to proscribed organisations or individuals.

The editors of the newspapers — Anuradha Bhasin and her husband Prabodh Jamwal — issued a statement terming the raids “yet another attempt to silence us”.

“The bizarre allegations against us are baseless. Criticising the government is not the same as being inimical to the state. In fact, it is the very opposite. A robust, questioning Press is essential to a healthy democracy. Our work of holding power to account, investigating corruption and amplifying marginalised voices strengthens our nation. It does not weaken it” the statement by the editors read.

The first edition of Kashmir Times was rolled out in 1954 by veteran journalist Ved Bhasin, father of Anuradha. “The newspaper has stood as a pillar of independent journalism. We have chronicled the region’s triumphs and failures with equal rigour. We have given voice to communities that would otherwise go unheard. We have asked difficult questions when others remained silent”, the statement by the editors read.

The editors also asked the authorities to withdraw the “unfounded allegations, and respect the constitutional guarantees of Press freedom”.

SIA sleuths, along with J&K policemen, entered the premises early in the morning. Officials said a thorough search of the premises was conducted after a case was registered against the publication and its editors. The FIR charges Kashmir Times with disseminating terrorist and secessionist ideology, spreading inflammatory, fabricated and false narratives and attempting to radicalise the youth of J&K among other allegations.

In August this year, the J&K Government had banned 25 books that include “A Dismantled State: The Untold Story of Kashmir after Article 370” written by Anuradha.

Anuradha was critical in her writings about the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019 by the Centre. In October 2020, the office of Kashmir Times in Srinagar was sealed by the Estates Department of J&K.

Anuradha, along with her family, had moved to the US a few years ago and was operating the website of the newspaper from there. Both Anuradha and Jamwal took over the reins of the newspaper after the death of Ved Bhasin, considered the epitome of journalism in J&K.