Kashmir Press Club urges govt to restore internet for media

The Kashmir Press Club has expressed concern over the continuous internet blockade for journalists in Kashmir for the last 177 days. The press club in a statement described the move as a deliberate attempt to stifle the press in Kashmir.

The statement said that the January 10 Supreme Court verdict has defined access to internet as a constitutionally guaranteed right.

"There appears no headway from the government to ensure this right is available to the media fraternity in the Valley," read the statement.

It added that the government has singled out media organisations and journalists by not restoring their internet access.

Internet service providers are seeking a written undertaking in which subscribers are asked to provide complete access to all content and infrastructure as and when required by the security agencies.

"This is a serious breach of individual rights and right to privacy," the statement said.

It further said the authorities have also not taken into consideration net neutrality and whitelisted only 301 websites. Majority of local news websites, as well as national and international websites, are not among the whitelisted ones.

Journalists have been demanding restoration of internet in Kashmir and have staged protests several times to press for their demands.

The government has established a media centre for the journalists at the State Information Department here. But the journalists say that the terminals available there are not enough to meet with the huge rush of scribes who go there to access the internet and file their stories.-IANS