Thousands protest against the treatment of The Wire editor in India

 JournalismPakistan.com |  Published: 16 April 2020

Around 3,500 individuals have protested against the FIR filed against The Wire editor Siddharth Varadarajan in Uttar Pradesh. Prominent figures are urging the government to drop all charges and protect press freedom.

Summary

Around 3,500 jurists, academicians, actors, artists, and writers have protested against the Uttar Pradesh (UP) government for filing criminal charges under a First Information Report (FIR) against The Wire editor Siddharth Varadarajan (pictured). The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and its affiliate, the Indian Journalists Union (IJU), have urge the UP government to scrap all criminal proceedings against the editor. In a joint statement, people from different walks of life, including former Supreme Court Judge Madan B Lokur, former Madras High Court Judge K Chandru and former Patna High Court Judge Anjana Prakash protested against the Uttar Pradesh government’s move on April 14. The FIR was filed against Siddharth Varadarajan for his alleged ‘defamatory’ comments against the UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath that appeared in The Wire. The protests followed the serving of a notice on April 10 to The Wire’s editor Siddharth Varadarajan, requesting he appear in Ayodhya Police station on April 14. In response to the police notice, Varadarajan tweeted on April 13 that he could not appear at the Ayodhya police station, 700 km from his home in Delhi, due to the nationwide Covid-19 lockdown. The FIR, filed by Nitish Kumar Shrivastav, a resident of Faizabad in Uttar Pradesh, alleges Varadarajan had made an “objectionable” comment about Uttar Pradesh Chief Mnister Yogi Adityanath. On March 31, The Wire published an article entitled ‘As COVID-19 Cases Spike in Nizamuddin, Nehru Stadium in Delhi to Become Quarantine Centre’ where it wrongly quoted Yogi Adityanath as saying ‘Lord Ram would protect devotees from the coronavirus.’ Later, The Wire apologized, saying the quote about Ram saving devotees from the coronavirus was wrongly attributed to Yogi Adityanath. IJU said: “Expressing solidarity with The Wire and its team, the IJU also urged Prime Minister Modi and Information & Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar to step in and ensure that the UP government does not make a mockery of their gratitude towards the media for acting as a link between the government and the people during this difficult time.” IFJ said: “Despite the Indian government’s calls to refrain from layoffs and pay cuts, media companies are continuing to downsize. The IFJ urges media companies to adopt a more humane approach, especially at a time when high quality journalism is needed to fight against Covid-19.”

Photo credit: Sushil Kumar Verma

KEY POINTS:

• 3,500 people protested against Uttar Pradesh government's FIR against Siddharth Varadarajan.
• The FIR relates to comments made about UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
• International Federation of Journalists urges an end to criminal proceedings.
• Prominent judges and artists support Varadarajan in the protests.
• The Wire apologized for a previously attributed quote from Yogi Adityanath about COVID-19.