Newspapers in Kashmir not to come out even tomorrow

Newspaper publishers and editors in Kashmir today decided not to come out with their publications for the fifth day tomorrow, alleging that the PDP-BJP government was not speaking in one voice and not owning up the "press emergency" imposed by it.
The decision was taken after a two-hour meeting of owners and editors of newspapers who met here to take stock of the situation, especially after Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti's advisor Amitabh Mattoo had personally met them yesterday and "apologised".
The announcement came hours after Information and Broadcasting Minister M Venkaiah Naidu said in Delhi that Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti had told him there was no ban on publication of newspapers in the Valley.

The meeting, which was called for reviewing the 'press emergency' imposed by the government on printing and distribution of newspapers, asked the state government to own up the raids that were carried out on the printing presses during the intervening night of July 15 and 16 when printed newspapers and plates were seized, and even the printing staff was detained.
Later, Education Minister Naeem Akther had met the editors and asked them not to bring out editions for next three days as movement of newspaper staff and distribution of newspapers was not possible because of strict curfew restrictions across the Kashmir Valley.

"One finds it surprising that the advisor came and apologised for the mistake and later went to town saying that there was no ban on newspaper and that the Chief Minister was not aware that the newspapers did not publish for last three days," Editor of Kashmir Monitor Bashir Manzar said after the meeting.

While Mattoo was apologising on one end, "the state government resorted to propaganda blitzkrieg insisting that there was no ban."
"They used all the available media to hit the credibility of the newspapers that have a history of not ceasing publication even when their members were killed," a release issued by the association said.

The association has taken the issue "very seriously" and conveyed to Mattoo that the state government "must own up the ban and issue a statement guaranteeing that media operations will not be hampered, from the movement of staff, which includes news gathering, printing and the distribution of the newspapers.
"We have not heard anything from anybody in the government since then. It indicates that the government has not changed its press emergency," the release said, adding that it would not be "possible for us to resume publication of newspapers. We will review the progress on Wednesday."
No local daily -- English or Urdu -- was available as the newspaper owners decided not to publish them after the "clampdown" by the government on Friday night.

(Reopens DEL55)
Meanwhile, District Magistrate, Srinagar, issued a notification late in the evening saying there was no restriction on printing and publishing of newspapers, a statement which found no takers among the owners and publishers of the newspapers.
Simultaneously, District Magistrate of Budgam also issued a notification on similar lines.
However, media owners insisted that the government own up the responsibility first that the newspapers were shut because of the "directions of Education Minister Naeem Akhter who also happens to the Government spokesman".
"We are ready to publish the newspapers once the state government owns up the responsibility of cracking down on newspapers," Editor of Kashmir Images Bashir Manzar said.

Others in the fraternity said that people of Kashmir were blaming the newspaper owners for blacking out the news. "It's a case of our credibility which is at stake and the state government should not take us for granted," another editor of an Urdu daily said.