Media-LA stand-off

Media covers proceedings after initial boycott

NL Correspondent

SRINAGAR: Media on Tuesday temporarily boycotted the assembly proceedings for 90 minutes over curbs on the press in the House.

As soon as the Legislative Assembly started its proceedings at 10 AM, the media persons staged a walk-out from the press gallery of Jammu and Kashmir assembly after the government barred them from taking mobile phones and cameras inside the House. Even they were not allowed to take vehicles inside the Assembly and Civil Secretariat gate.

After media persons came out of the assembly as a protest, several representatives of the government tried to pacify the protesting newsmen.

Senior minister Abdul Rehman Veeri told the media that speaker has withdrawn his order.

Later, Information Minister Chowdhary Zulfikar Ali too came out and expressed his regret. “Whatever has happened I regret for it. Please come inside and cover the proceedings. There was some miscommunication,” he told the media-men outside the house. “We will also enquire into it and the guilty will be punished.”

However, the journalists refused to budge from their stand and told the ministers their protest will continue till Speaker Kavindar Gupta himself request for it.

Senior journalist Fayaz Bukhari told the ministers, “What the hell you are doing here. A police constable stopped a senior journalist outside the gate,” Bukhari said.

Then Speaker himself came out and requested the media person to cover the proceedings of the House without any curbs. “We will enquire it and such incident will never happen again,” the Speaker told the media persons. After which the newsmen covered the proceedings of the House.