Online Desk: A capacity-building media workshop held in Mirpur city of Azad Jammu and Kashmir denounced the Indian media for what participants described as a systematic campaign of disinformation and distortion, especially regarding the Kashmir dispute. The workshop also condemned continuing human rights violations by Indian troops in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
According to Kashmir Media Service, the workshop titled “Indian Media’s Credibility Crisis: A Strategic Window to Amplify the Truth on Kashmir” was organized by the Institute of Dialogue, Development & Diplomatic Studies (IDDDs) in Mirpur, AJK and attended by leading journalists, senior editors, and members of the Kashmir Press Club Mirpur.
Speakers highlighted the deliberate erasure of the Kashmiri narrative in Indian mainstream media, particularly after the revocation of Article 370 on August 5, 2019. They emphasized for more vibrant role of AJK journalists to highlight the significance of early peaceful settlement of the Kashmir conflict through early grant of birth right to self-determination to the Kashmiri people for lasting peace in the region.
The workshop was presided over by Sohrab Ahmed Khan, Kashmir Press Club General Secretary and a veteran Kashmiri journalist. It was formally inaugurated by senior Kashmir leader Muhammad Aslam Malik, who lauded remarkable role played by the AJK media in carrying the burden of the suppressed Kashmiri voice particularly when all other democratic and political avenues have been choked post–5th August 2019.
Dr. Waleed Rasool, Director of IDDDs, presented a research paper titled “Deconstruction of Indian Media and the Dehumanization of Kashmiris”. Citing key findings from international crisis communication reports, he provided evidence-based briefing on how Indian media was exposed globally for its systematic misinformation—especially during the aggression launched by India across the Line of Control on May 5th and 6th. He argued that rather than functioning as a constitutional watchdog of power, Indian media has increasingly devolved into an instrument of Hindutva propaganda—surrendering professional ethics at the altar of hyper-nationalism.
In a unanimously passed resolution, the participating journalists condemned the Indian media for its loss of credibility and propagation of baseless narrative, particularly after the recent aggression in May. It appealed to the international community to expose institutions and individuals supporting this misleading agenda.
It denounced ongoing human rights violations by Indian troops in IIOJK, urging the UNSC and global human rights defenders to take immediate cognizance of widespread violation of international humanitarian law in Kashmir.
The resolution demanded the release of illegally detained Kashmiri political leaders, including Shabbir Ahmad Shah, Mohammad Yasin Malik, Dr. Fayyaz, Nayeem Khan, Asiya Andrabi, Fehmeeda Sofi, Naheed Nasreen, and all other imprisoned activists and women.
It called upon the United Nations to play its due role in implementing the long-pending Security Council resolutions on Kashmir, ensuring Kashmiris’ inalienable right to self-determination.
The participants included Hafiz Maqsood, Altaf Hamid Nizami, Rana Shabir Rajouvi, Raja Habib Ullah, Zaffar Mughal, Sajad Bukhari, Raja Rasheed, Khalil Yousaf, Zahid Bashir Chaudhry, Shiraaz Bukhari, Muhammad Azam, Faisal Gulzar and others.
