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Editor of The Kashmiriyat, Qazi Shibli, Detained for Reasons Unknown

News Desk

Editor of The Kashmiriyat, Qazi Shibli, under Detention for Reasons Unknown. Credits: Simeen Anjum

One of the editors of The Kashmiriyat, Qazi Shibli, after being summoned by the cyber police in Srinagar was later detained and is yet to be released. There has been no clarification from the cyber police as to what charges he has been detained for.

Qazi Shibli had got a call from the cyber police station at around 2:15 PM on Thursday asking him to present himself for questioning in the cyber police station on Friday.

On Friday, speaking to The Kashmiriyat, Qazi Shibli’s family stated that they waited for 8 hours outside the Cyber Cell in Srinagar before being told that he was being detained, without revealing the charges for detention.

As of now, Qazi Shibli’s family said that they don’t have any updates regarding his detention.

Pertinently, Qazi was arrested last year in 2019, and booked under Public Safety Act (PSA) for publishing news about heavy deployment of security forces in Kashmir before August 5th. He had been kept at Bareilly jail for 9 months and released on 13th April 2020.

Qazi Shibli’s detention on Friday has been widely condemned on various social media platforms.

On Twitter, many journalists, activists, and academicians demanded Shibli’s release and condemned the harassment.

Tweeting with the hashtag #JournalismIsNotACrime and #ReleaseQaziShibli, people are questioning the government for muzzling the ‘voice of people’, the journalists.

People from across the globe and in Kashmir have taken to Twitter in support of Qazi Shibli: 

Demanding Qazi Shibil’s release, Committee for Protection Journalists (CPJ) tweeted, “@JmuKmrPolice must immediately release @QaziShibl, the editor of @TheKashmiriyat, who was detained last evening by the Cyber Crime Cell in Srinagar. #ReleaseQaziShibli #PressFreedom #Kashmir #India #JournalismIsNotACrime” 

130th President of Catalonia (Spain), Member of the European Parliament Carles Puigdemont, tweeted for Qazi Shibli demanding his release,” The arrest of the cashmere journalist Qazi Shibli recalls that the threat to freedom of expression and information also understands no boundaries. The repressive international may have many faces and nuances, but it is the same. He always pursues the same. “
Yusuf Jameel, a prominent Kashmiri journalist, tweeted, “Wonder if @QaziShibli‘s fault is his being Editor of @TheKashmiriyat? Should have chosen #SabKhairiyat as title for his publication. On a more serious note, we must be told why he was summoned by the police again and, as has been reported by@FreePressK, detained subsequently.”

Mir Suhail, a leading Kashmiri political cartoonist, tweeted, “JOURNALISM IS NOT A CRIME!!! #releaseqazishibli #kashmir #journalismunderattack #freejournalism #pressfreedom”

Adnan Bhat, an independent multimedia journalist, tweeted “A journalist was summoned to a police station. Almost, 24hrs later he remains in detention. No word on the charges under which he is being held. This can’t not be normal. #ReleaseQaziShibli“

Qazi Zaid, the editor of Free Press Kashmir, tweeted “This is ridiculous. On the night of Arfa police is detaining QaziShibli. This harassment @ hounding of a journalist for writing a report must stop. Why is he being harassed? @Tahir_A,@listenshahid, @kansalrohit69?”

Fahad Shah, the editor of  The Kashmiri Walla, tweeted “JOURNALISM IS NOT A CRIME #ReleaseShibli“

Peerzada Wassem, a Kashmiri photojournalist, tweeted “Release Qazi Shibli #JournalismIsNotACrime”

Zeeshan Jaipuri, an emerging Kashmiri poet, tweeted Qazi Shibli’s words, “These FIRs and arrests, including my imprisonment, are just like small threads. Ultimately it will become a web, and we’ll get stuck into it like insects. Before the web gets strong — we need to speak against it.” –@QaziShibli #ReleaseShibli”

More tweets are available below:

The Kashmiriyat team awaits the safe and secure return of our editor, Qazi Shibli.

#ReleaseQaziShibli #JournalismIsNotACrime #QaziShibli #ReleaseShibli #Kashmir

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