Srinagar: In a dramatic move, a group of journalists led by Saleem Pandit of The Times of India forcibly took over the Kashmir Press Club by issuing a statement announcing an interim body, in violation of the club’s constitution.
In the afternoon, according to details shared by the elected body of the KPC, Pandit came along with his personal security personnel and wrote a statement naming himself as president while declaring Zulfkar Majid of Deccan Herald as general secretary and Arshid Rasool of Gadyal as Treasurer. This statement said that the trio along with a yet to be announced executive body will run daily affairs of the club, claiming they were unanimously chosen by various journalist organisations.
“With the Kashmir Press Club being defunct for the last six months when the tenure of the previously elected body ended, a new interim body was elected on Saturday January 15, 2022 with veteran journalist M Saleem Pandit as the President. The three member body also includes journalists Zufliqar Majid as the General Secretary and Arshad Rasool as the treasurer of the Club till the elections are held in free and fair manner,” it said in a statement.
But hours later, Kashmir journalists associations comprising nine bodies including the elected body of Kashmir Press Club unanimously expressed anguish over the illegal and arbitrary takeover of the Club by some journalists with open support from the local administration.
“All journalist bodies are unanimous in the view that this unfortunate move by a disgruntled lot has set a dangerous precedent by forcing their way into the club office in violation of the KPC constitution and bylaws,” a joint statement said and added that they have decided to take legal recourse against the group of journalists.
In a detailed statement, the associations said that on January 15, the day when the administration had declared weekend lockdown in view of Covid surge, a group of journalists barged into the club office and forcibly took control of the club by keeping the office members hostage. “Large number of police and paramilitary personnel were deployed beforehand for this highly condemnable and completely illegal move,” the joint statement said.
The journalist associations that issued the statement include Journalist Federation of Kashmir (JFK), Kashmir Working Journalists Association (KWJA), Kashmir Press Photographer Association (KPPA), Kashmir Press Club (KPC), Kashmir Video Journalist Association (KVJA), Kashmir Working Journalists Association, Kashmir National Television Journalist Association (KNTJA) and Kashmir Journalist Association (KJA).
“The administration, by allowing a few disgruntled elements to hoodwink the Club constitution, bylaws and flout all norms of law, has set a wrong and dangerous precedent. The authorities had already communicated about the mandatory re- registration, which was initiated by the KPC management, but it took authorities more than six months to verify the credentials of the management body,” it said.
Giving more details, it said that on 29 December, the reregistration was finally issued following which the Club decided to initiate the process of fresh elections and also announced the date. “But all of a sudden a group of journalists, including some non-members, approached the district administration with a proposal for an “interim body” and it was followed by a communication from the government that the re-registration has been kept in abeyance,” it said.
“This move, in which a group of journalists self-appointed itself as an “interim body,” is uncivil, illegal, unconstitutional and without any precedence. It has been taken at a time when the process of registration is still pending before the authorities.
We appeal to the press bodies across the country including Press Council of India, Press Club of India, Federation of Press Clubs and Editors Guild of India to take a strong note of how the local administration is supporting lawlessness and throttling a democratic media body. If such incidents are allowed to happen with a Press Club in Kashmir this can be precedence for future,” it said.

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KR Desk