The Kashmir editors’ guild (KEG) Friday demanded a response from the governor’s administration to a “crippling order” banning disbursal of government advertisements to Greater Kashmir and Kashmir Reader newspapers.
A KEG spokesman said in a statement that “at a time whenworld’s largest democracy is readying for one of the major electoral exerciseson earth, the Kashmir editors’ guild is lamenting over the continued denial andunexplained halt to the rightful disbursal of government advertisements toKashmir’s two major daily newspapers—Greater Kashmir and Kashmir Reader. Theenigmatic decision is directly hitting the constitutional guarantees thatencourage free media in democratic societies.”
“We had requested the authorities to at least offer us areason for why the advertisements were stopped, without intimation and reason.We have not been given an iota of reason, so far,” the statement read, addingthat the ban has deprived the two publications of the “rightful revenue streamand has started hurting the state and status of journalism in Kashmir.”
“It was done at a time when the newspapers were busydrafting capital intensive plans for effective coverage of the elections aboutto be announced by the election commission of India (ECI). The KEG that met forthe second time this week on the issue of the peculiar gag is requesting thegovernor Satya Pal Malik and his advisors to take the issue very seriously andsee it in the context of the largest democratic exercise that is about tostart. A democracy that lacks a vibrant media will have to face uncomfortablyserious questions,” the statement read.
“From the governor’s administration, the KEG is seeking aformal response and immediate undoing of the crippling order. The editors’ bodyis hopeful that the government will give it a top priority and undo theanti-democratic restrictions.”