Srinagar | WTNS | September 22:A Srinagar-based journalist was  summoned by cyber police for his story, which was published in a national news portal a few days back.

Wilayat Times reports, According to the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), Aqib Javid, an accredited journalist said that on 18 September at around 5 pm, he received a call from the Cyber Police Station. “The caller told me to be present at the Cyber Police Station the next day regarding a story that I had written for Article 14. The summons was verbal as there was nothing in writing,” he said.

He added that the next day, he along with his colleagues from Kashmir Press Club (KPC) visited Cyber Police Station where he met the officials who had called him.

The accredited journalist said that they went in Cyber Police Station at 11:15 am and were allowed to go at around 04:00 pm.

Meanwhile, a police statement issued to KNO, reads that on 17-09-2020, it was reliably learnt that one story captioned “The Real Cyber Bully: Police in Kashmir Question Kashmir Twitter” was published on “Article-14”, an online news portal.

“In the story, the writer depicted a misleading picture with incorrect detail. The headline and the picture with some of the content were factually incorrect hence misleading. The writer published a picture of a building showing it as Cyber Police Station Kashmir Zone, Srinagar, which is incorrect. The fact of the matter is that the Cyber Police Station has been notified as a Police Station in October-2019 and was established in the upper story of the Police Station Shergari building,” cyber police said in a statement.

The said writer has misled the general public about the functioning of Cyber Police Station and its establishment, police said, adding that accordingly on 18-09-2020, the writer was called in the Cyber Police Station Kashmir in connection with clarification of facts mentioned in the article and on 19-09-2020, the said writer visited the Cyber Police Station Kashmir accompanied by some senior journalists from Kashmir Press Club.

“The writer admitted that the picture published in the article is incorrect and has also admitted that he has no knowledge about the functioning and establishment of Cyber Police Station Kashmir. Further the writer also admitted that he has never visited Cyber Police Station and has no knowledge regarding establishment of Cyber Police Station Kashmir at Shergari Complex. The writer and other accompanying (senior journalists) regretted the incorrect detail and assured that the story will be tweaked accordingly.  On this the writer namely Aqib Javeed along with accompanying senior journalists of Kashmir Press Club asked to meet the SP Incharge Cyber Police Station Kashmir. Finally the writer accompanying other senior journalists met the SP Incharge Cyber Police Station and showed the tweaked story and regretted publishing incorrect/ misleading content.  Later they left for their respective destinations,” cyber police said.

“The allegation of excesses by Police officials/ officer, published subsequently by Article-14 and other Social Media handle are misleading and factually incorrect, hence refuted,” cyber police said.

Kashmir Editors Guild (KEG) has expressed anguish and pain over the reported abuse of journalist Auqib Javed by the police, managing the cyber cell in Srinagar.

According to a statement issued here, KEG said that Auqib, an accredited journalist, had been summoned over a story that was published by an on-line news portal in Delhi. The Guild said though the responsibility of the report published rests mostly with the publisher, the raw deal that Auqib Javed got post-summoning does not suit any decision-maker.

“Auqib, in his first hand account, published by the website has said that he was slapped and abused. He also said that on the basis of the phone call, from the cyber cell, the website editor did acknowledge certain issues with the report and rectified it right away. Even if there could have been issues with the report, the reporter and the website were morally bound to rectify it, if any,” the statement added.

KEG has maintained throughout that the reporters, per se, lack a direct stake holding in a happening beyond reporting it for the society. Reporters’ role and that of the larger media is mostly that of an unbiased postman. However, it is tragic that every time, there is an issue; it is the messenger that is under attack.

Yet again, the KEG is urging the authorities to avoid making media a casualty of a situation in which media lacks a role other than record-keeping.

“Kashmir media including the newspapers published in Jammu and Kashmir and the professionals reporting for diverse media within and outside the country are professional, objective and very well experienced. Making media a deliberate victim does not augur well for the larger society and does not suit the democratic polity either,” KEG added