: A Kashmir Journalist Has Been Arrested Amid a Widening Crackdown on Press Freedom #WorldNEWS Police in Indian-controlled Kashmir said they arrested a prominent journalist on accusations of publishing

A Kashmir Journalist Has Been Arrested Amid a Widening Crackdown on Press Freedom #WorldNEWS
Police in Indian-controlled Kashmir said they arrested a prominent journalist on accusations of publishing “anti-national content,” in a widening crackdown against media in the disputed region.
Fahad Shah, the editor of news portal Kashmir Walla who has previously written for TIME, was summoned for questioning in southern Pulwama town on Friday and later arrested.
Police said he was identified among Facebook users and portals that had published “anti-national content,” without specifying what it is. It said the content was posted with “criminal intention to create fear and could “provoke the public to disturb law and order. ” It said such content was “tantamount to glorifying the terrorist activities. ”
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The case relates to a gunfight between rebels trapped inside a civilian home and Indian troops in Pulwama on Jan. 30. Police had said a Kashmiri rebel commander was killed in the fighting along with a Pakistani and another local militant. They described the fourth slain teenage boy, the house owner’s son, as a “hybrid” militant, a term authorities began using last year for alleged militants with no police record and who operate as civilians.
Kashmir Walla carried a series of reports on the fighting presenting both sides of the story. One video report quoted family members of the slain boy refuting the police. Another video quoted the boy’s sister contradicting an earlier statement from the family.
Shah, 34, was arrested under Indias harsh anti-terror and sedition laws, which include punishment of up to seven years.
Shah and few other reporters associated with Kashmir Walla have been questioned for their reporting several times in the last few years.
On Saturday, police tweeted that Shah was wanted in three cases for glorifying terrorism, spreading fake news & inciting general public for creating L&O (law and order) situations. ”
The award-winning journalist has also reported for several foreign publications.

More from TIME

Kashmir is divided between India and Pakistan and both claim it in full. Since 1989, a full-blown armed rebellion has raged in the Indian-controlled part seeking a united Kashmir, either under Pakistani rule or independent of both.
The region is one of the most heavily militarized in the world. Tens of thousands of civilians, rebels and government forces have been killed in the raging conflict.
Journalists have long contended with threats in Indian-controlled Kashmir. But their predicament became worse after India revoked the region’s semi-autonomy in 2019, throwing Kashmir under a severe security and communication lockdown.