India

(PPF/IFEX) – According to PPF, Videsh Sanchar Nigam Ltd (VSNL), India’s sole gateway to the Internet, has blocked the web site of Pakistan’s leading English language daily newspaper, “Dawn”. According to “The Times of India”, Internet users in India have been unable to connect to the “Dawn” website for more than a week. A VSNL […]

(IFJ/IFEX) – The following is a letter received by the IFJ from the minister of information of Pakistan in response to a 9 June 1999 IFEX alert update: **Updates IFEX alerts of 9 and 4 June 1999** Mr. Aidan White, General Secretary, International Federation of Journalists, Brussels, Belgium. From: Mr. Mushahid Hussain Minister for Information, […]

(IFJ/IFEX) – IFJ General Secretary Aidan White met Indian Minister of Information and Communication Pramod Mahajan on 9 June 1999. **Updates IFEX alert of 4 June 1999** White raised the IFJ’s concerns, similar to those raised by other organisations, about the ban on Pakistan television by the Indian authorities. The IFJ notes that on the […]

(PPF/IFEX) – In New Delhi on 2 June 1999, the Indian minister for information and broadcasting, Pramod Mahajan, banned the transmission of Pakistan Television (PTV) by cable operators. According to Agence France-Presse (AFP), Mahajan said cable operators throughout the country would be prohibited from telecasting PTV programmes because of the “vilification campaign against India, especially […]

(HRW/IFEX) – The following is a Human Rights Watch press release: INQUIRY NEEDED INTO CALCUTTA INSTITUTE CENSORSHIP (New York, April 9) – Human Rights Watch today urged the Indian government to ensure that political tensions in the country do not spill over and restrict academic freedom. In an open letter to Indian president K.R. Narayanan, […]

(CPJ/IFEX) – CPJ is deeply disturbed by the murder of Anil Rattan, a free-lance journalist and former correspondent for the Hong Kong-based magazine “AsiaWeek”. Rattan’s killing marks the third murder of a journalist in the Indian capital in less than two months. Police say that Rattan’s body was discovered in the bathroom of his Delhi […]

(CPJ/IFEX) – CPJ is deeply disturbed by the murder of Anil Rattan, a free-lance journalist and former correspondent for the Hong Kong-based magazine “AsiaWeek”. Rattan’s killing marks the third murder of a journalist in the Indian capital in less than two months. Police say that Rattan’s body was discovered in the bathroom of his Delhi […]

(CPJ/IFEX) – CPJ is deeply disturbed by reports that Naresh Kumar Kalita, news editor of the Assamese-language newspaper “Agradoot,” is now being detained under the National Security Act (NSA), which allows for preventive detention without trial. **Updates IFEX alerts of 25 February and 11 February 1999; for background on the Ajit Bhuyan case see IFEX […]

(CPJ/IFEX) – CPJ is deeply concerned over the prolonged detention of Naresh Kumar Kalita, news editor of the Assamese language newspaper “Agradoot.” ** Updates IFEX alert of 11 February 1999** On 25 February 1999, Guwahati’s High Court rejected Kalita’s bail petition for the second time in two weeks. Police arrested the journalist at his home […]

(RSF/IFEX) – RSF is protesting the arrests of three senior journalists in the state of Assam. According to RSF’s information, on 10 February 1999, Naresh Kalita, news editor of the vernacular daily “Agradoot”, was arrested by the police on charges of aiding and abetting separatist militants. A police statement said that he was jailed after […]

(WAN/IFEX) – The following is a WAN press release: **Updates IFEX alerts of 28 January 1999** Paris, 10 February 1999 For immediate release Indian Journalist’s Murder Sparks International Concern The World Association of Newspapers has asked the Indian government to ensure a quick and thorough investigation into the murder of Indian journalist Shivani Bhatnagar, a […]

(RSF/IFEX) – RSF is filled with consternation following the murder of Shivani Bhatnagar, of “The Indian Express”. According to RSF’s information, on 23 January 1999, Bhatnagar, special correspondent for the daily “The Indian Express”, was murdered by unknown assailants at her home in east Delhi. She was strangled, stabbed in the neck and hit on […]

(CPJ/IFEX) – CPJ is expressing its deep dismay over the brutal murder of Shivani Bhatnagar, special correspondent for the prestigious English-language daily newspaper “The Indian Express”. On 23 January 1999, unknown assailants entered Bhatnagar’s East Delhi apartment, strangled her with a length of wire, and then stabbed her in the neck and abdomen with kitchen […]

(RSF/IFEX) – RSF is expressing concern further to death threats received by two Assamese journalists. According to RSF’s information, in its 23 October 1998 issue, the daily “Amar Asom” said that two senior journalists of the newspaper were threatened with death by a former separatist militant after they enquired about his involvement with the police […]

(RSF/IFEX) – RSF is protesting an assault on two journalists in north-east India. According to RSF’s information, on 17 October 1998, Pradeep Behera, a senior journalist with the English-language daily “Arunachal Times”, was assaulted by six unidentified persons armed with lethal weapons who entered his home in the state of Arunachal Pradesh. He is in […]

(RSF/IFEX) – RSF is protesting the new press censorship decided by the Manipur government. According to RSF, during the first week of October 1998, the government of the state of Manipur (northern India) ordered the local media not to publish or distribute statements by the separatist guerillas. The government’s directive says that any newspaper which […]