SRINAGAR: The police on Wednesday raided the residences of four journalists in Srinagar.
Three of the journalists—Hilal Mir, Shah Abbas and Azhar Qadri—have been contributing articles for international publications while Showket Ahmed Motta was the editor of a local monthly news magazine called Kashmir Narrator. The magazine, however, stopped publication in 2019.
Sources said the police seized laptops and mobile phones of the journalists and their spouses and conducted thorough searches of their houses. After the raids, the four were summoned to the local police station, where they were interrogated. However, it is not known why the residences of these four journalists were raided. The police have not given any reasons for the raids.
The raids took place after a recent statement by Inspector General of Police (IGP) Kashmir Vijay Kumar that several media outlets, including the Kashmir Media Service, which are run from Pakistan, have been trying to spread fake news and videos to instigate violence after the death of separatist leader Syed Ali Geelani.
“Even a few local media persons and channels have been found spreading fake news. We are observing them and are maintaining evidence. Appropriate action will be taken against them. Such elements are advised not to spread fake news without consulting law enforcement agencies,” the Inspector General of Police had stated.