Kashmiri journalist Sajad Gul released on bail after two years

 JournalismPakistan.com |  Published: 9 October 2024 |  CPJ News Alert

Sajad Gul, a Kashmiri journalist, was released on bail after over two years in detention on multiple charges. The Committee to Protect Journalists emphasizes the urgent need for the Indian authorities to ensure press freedom in the region.

Summary

NEW DELHI—The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomes the release of Kashmiri journalist Sajad Gul on bail—after more than two years of arbitrary detention on multiple charges—and calls on authorities in the Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir to immediately end all prosecution against him.

“The release of Kashmiri journalist Sajad Gul on bail is long overdue,” CPJ Asia Program Coordinator Beh Lih Yi said on Tuesday. “The collapse of press freedom in Kashmir in recent years is stark. With elections over, the newly elected local government must immediately free other Kashmiri journalists behind bars and allow the media to report freely without fear of reprisal.”

Gul, a trainee reporter with the now-banned news website The Kashmir Walla, was granted bail on July 8 by a court in the northern Bandipora district of Kashmir. The details of the bail have not been made public, according to sources who told CPJ on condition of anonymity, citing fear of reprisal. The bail was related to one of the three cases Gul faces over charges of rioting, attempted murder, and actions prejudicial to national integration.

Gul was first arrested on January 5, 2022, from his home in Bandipora in connection with a video he posted on X, showing women protesting the killing of a local militant leader, according to news reports. The journalist was detained under the Jammu and Kashmir Public Safety Act, which allows for a maximum two-year detention, before a Jammu and Kashmir High Court quashed his detention under the law in November 2023, stating that no concrete evidence or specific allegations proving his actions were prejudicial to the security of the state.

Before his July release, Gul was granted bail in two other cases in connection with the video, in which he faced charges of criminal conspiracy, assault, or criminal force to deter a public servant from discharging their duty and endangering life or personal safety, according to those sources.

Jammu and Kashmir voters went to the polls last month for the first time since India unilaterally revoked the region’s semi-autonomous status in 2019, which prompted a rapid decline in press freedom. After votes were counted on October 8, an opposition alliance is set to form a government.

Two more Kashmiri journalists—Irfan Mehraj and Majid Hyderi—remain behind bars.

Photo: Screenshot: YouTube/Newsclick

KEY POINTS:

• Sajad Gul released on bail after two years of detention.
• Facing charges of rioting, attempted murder, and national integration issues.
• Calls for immediate release of other jailed Kashmiri journalists.
• Press freedom in Kashmir has deteriorated significantly in recent years.
• Elections were held recently, raising hopes for better media conditions.