Media Barred from Covering Mehraj Malik’s Victory Rally in Doda Citing Security Concerns, Sparking Outrage

Media Barred from Covering Mehraj Malik’s Victory Rally in Doda Citing Security Concerns, Sparking Outrage

Dil Bar Irshad | October 14, 2024 | 03:50 PM IST | Doda, Featured by VoM, Featured Edition | Follow on Google News

Media Barred from Covering Mehraj Malik’s Victory Rally in Doda

Media Barred from Covering Mehraj Malik’s Victory Rally in Doda

As the Sports Stadium in Doda witnessed a high-voltage power show, led by the victorious Mehraj Malik, who won the Doda East Election, a major gathering came to celebrate the victory and thank the people. The main dignitaries at the event included former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, and MP Sanjay Singh. However, in a surprising decision, major media outlets & mediapersons from Doda were barred from covering the event, citing security concerns.

Does the Media Need Permission to Cover an Event?

It’s entirely misleading to suggest that mediapersons need permission to cover an event. When a politician visits a location, how and why should the media be required to seek permission from anyone? If such practices are allowed, wouldn’t it lead to selective media coverage?

Furthermore, with people climbing over walls, wasn’t that a security concern? Why were some allowed access, while others were not?

How Did Media Personnel Become a Security Threat/Issue?

Despite tight security measures for the event, which included checking and scanning, media personnel were subjected to the same procedures. If security officials had already checked and scanned individuals entering the venue, including what they carried, why were media persons not granted entry after going through the same process? It would have been easy to check and scan media personnel and their equipment.

This is the first time in Doda’s history that media persons were considered a security issue and denied entry to cover an event.

Watch Video Reported by Muhammad Babar/VoM

Huda Zariwala’s Response to Media Barred from Coverage

Huda Zariwala, State Spokesperson, Media PR & Communication In-Charge from Delhi, who came to support the party, was also not allowed inside the venue. She referred to it as a security concern. Huda Zariwala faced tough questions from media workers from various channels and portals. One media worker asked, “Does the Aam Aadmi Party not require local media?” Another asked, “Is the Aam Aadmi Party afraid of the media?”

Another question raised was, “Why were mediapersons kept away from performing their professional duties? Why weren’t media workers informed earlier in the morning about such a sudden decision?”

A media person, Rashid, expressed his frustration, asking, “Why were media persons not allowed? Why was the Punjab protocol applied in Doda? Even during the Prime Minister’s visit to Doda, such restrictions weren’t in place.”

Another media person, Naeem Ul Haq Wani, asked, “When PM Modi came here, mediaworkers were allowed to cover the event. Is the Chief Minister’s protocol higher than the PM’s? Does the Aam Aadmi Party not need the Doda media? Until now, local media has been allowed to cover every political event, so why were special media personnel called for this specific event?”

Watch the video, and witness, what Naeem ul Haq Wani said while interacting with a social media platform.

Aam Aadmi Party’s Response

Calling it a State-to-State security concern, Huda Zariwala praised the Aam Aadmi Party’s victory in Doda and lauded Mehraj Malik’s efforts. However, she was unable to fully defend the party amidst the chaos caused by barring the media.

As of now, the Aam Aadmi Party has not officially addressed this issue, leaving many information activists unable to complete their work. Attempts to reach the Aam Aadmi Party spokespersons in Jammu and Kashmir by our senior correspondent were unsuccessful.

Dil Bar Irshad

Dil Bar Irshad is a seasoned journalist, hails from Jammu Kashmir's Doda, covers political, social, business stories, index stories.