Kashmir Press Club ceases to exist, govt cancels allotment

Arjun Sharma

Jammu, January 17

The J&K government today cancelled the allotment of the Kashmir Press Club (KPC) premises and reverted back the building to the Estates Department amid dissensions between two factions of scribes. There have been allegations that one of the groups has the government’s support.

The club has ceased to exist, stated the government.

Rift between two groups of scribes

• The government says the Kashmir Press Club has ceased to exist and its managing body too has come to a legal closure on July 14, 2021, the date on which its tenure came to an end.
• On Saturday, a few scribes accompanied by cops had claimed to be the club’s new interim management.
• One of the groups accuses the other of having the government support.

Crisis orchestrated to shut it down, alleges Mehbooba Mufti

• The crisis in the Kashmir Press Club seems to have been orchestrated to shut it down, alleges Mehbooba Mufti, president of the Peoples Democratic Party.
• At the party’s youth conclave in Jammu, she said getting rid of the BJP would be bigger than freedom from British rule. She also met those affected by the JDA’s demolition drive.

An official statement read, “The government is concerned over the emergent situation which has arisen due to the unpleasant turn of events involving two rival warring groups using the banner of the Kashmir Press Club… It has been decided that the allotment of the premises at Polo View of the now deregistered club be cancelled…”

It further stated that the factual position is that the KPC as a registered body has ceased to exist and its managing body too has come to a legal closure on July 14, 2021, the date on which its tenure came to an end. According to information, the KPC had been issued a re-registration certificate on December 29 which was placed under abeyance pending police verification on January 14.

On Saturday, a group of journalists accompanied by armed cops reached the club claiming to be its new interim management. This was a day after the governmment had put KPC’s registration “in abeyance”. The journalists released a statement stating that “some journalist forums” had chosen them to be new office-bearers, a claim contested by nine journalist associations from the Valley. The other faction alleged that the J&K government was taking sides with the second group.

The Editors Guild of India had termed the events a “coup” and a continuing trend to smother press freedom in the UT. Several other organisations too have flayed the government for what the Kashmir Press Club has seen in the recent past.