FOR three consecutive days Kashmir went without newspapers, thanks to the restrictions imposed by the law and order agencies over the media. For the first two days, curfew passes were straightaway cancelled. The third day, as an act of great favour, just a few curfew passes were issued, as if a one page poster was to be brought out in the morning. Who do they try to fool! So effectively media was denied to work for all the three days. Even before it was made extremely difficult for the media to work on ground and gather news. Photo journalists were thrashed when they were doing their routine work. Pertinent to mention that copies of Greater Kashmir and Kashimr Uzma were disallowed distribution when the vehicles carrying the copies were stopped from moving ahead to their distribution points. That was last week, and we at Greater Kashmir had made an editorial note of it. But who listens to a voice from Kashmir, no matter how sane it is. Kashmir is a place where laws, rules and politico-administrative ethics have been sent on exile. That is why a single missive from administration makes the local cable operated TV channels squeeze the news bulletin to just ten minutes. Hold on, major chunk of this time slot is to be dedicated to the coverage of government activity. Can it get more ludicrous than this! As if it’s war time, authorities who actually rule Kashmir have decided that not a single word should come out of the battle ground. In this modern age of information technology authorities in Kashmir are trying to act in ways that reek of the times of Great Wars. Media must be disallowed to speak about what is happening around, because war entails measures that in all likelihood invite public wrath. Thought even in war rooms such a brute mind is a rarity, but in Kashmir everything is placed upside down.
Yet Indian TV channels were full with the news from Kashmir, someone might cut us with the caveat. Far from being a saving grace for the authorities it actually alludes towards how nasty things have turned in Kashmir. Media has insidiously been categorized into local, meaning Kashmiri, and national, meaning Indian. It’s an evil division in which Subjects are disallowed the same activity which is being facilitated for the darling guys of Rulers. On a more practical note it serves authorities a great purpose. They have apportioned both sides of the table to themselves. They want to negotiate things between themselves, avowedly for us. That is a mockery of cruel proportions. They cover the news by way of covering it up. They twist it in ways that suits them the most. In the Gulf War we came to know about embedded journalism. What is this- give us a name!

Lastupdate on : Sat, 10 Jul 2010 21:30:00 Mecca time
Lastupdate on : Sat, 10 Jul 2010 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Sun, 11 Jul 2010 00:00:00 IST