Irfan Mehraj, a Kashmiri journalist who is also the senior editor at TwoCircles.net. was arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) under the draconian UAPA (Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act) in Srinagar.
Irfan has been arrested in case no RC-37/2020/NIA/DLI alleging terror funding. According to fellow journalist Raqib Hameed Naik’s tweet, who is also a friend of Irfan, the latter has been shifted to New Delhi for further investigations.
Mehraj is a well-known journalist in the Valley. He was the founding editor of Wande Magazine before donning the role of senior editor at TwoCircles.net.
Irfan was formerly a researcher with Khurram Parvez’s Jammu Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society (JKCCS).
“Over the last two years, he was questioned multiple times by the NIA. His electronic gadgets were confiscated in 2020. Currently, he is a senior editor at @TCNLive and contributed for @AJEnglish & @dwnews,” Raqib Hameed tweeted.
Journalist Federation of Kashmir condemns arrest
The Journalist Federation of Kashmir (JFK) has posted a tweet condemning Mehraj’s arrest by the NIA.
“Mehraj’s arrest seems to be another tactic of intimidating journalists in Kashmir who have always worked under perilous conditions, holding up values of press freedom in the face of dangers to life and liberty. JFK strongly condemns the pattern of intimidation and views it as a continued attack on the freedom of the press in Kashmir,” said a tweet.
Citing the Supreme Court of India’s 2020 statement that stated India’s freedom rests on the shoulders of journalists, JFK tweeted, “For a vibrant press to flourish in a society, authorities have to move beyond hollow claims of respect for press freedom and work towards a conducive environment where a journalist can report the facts on ground, express opinion on social media without fear, threat of arrest.”
Not the first Kashmiri journalist
In April last year, another Kashmiri journalist and editor of The Kashmir Wala Fahad Shah was booked under the UAPA for sharing social media posts containing alleged “anti-India statements with a criminal intention to disturb law and order.” After months of struggle, Fahad Shah was finally granted bail by a local court.
According to Shah’s lawyer Umair Ronga, Fahad Shah was granted bail by a special court designated under the National Investigation Agency Act, 2008.
