Women Press Freedom Speaks with Courageous Indian Journalists Facing Threats and Suppression Amid Elections
“Being a journalist in India right now is one of the most difficult jobs”
By Rabia MushtaqDate: May 21, 2024
“Being a journalist in India right now is one of the most difficult jobs,” a Kashmiri-Muslim journalist, who wished to stay anonymous, tells Women Press Freedom. Journalists in India are passionate about reporting but often navigate precarious waters, as Women Press Freedom has documented, knowing well how each word they utter or write carries weight but also teeters on the verge of censorship.
Nearly 970 million people have voted in the country’s ongoing elections since April 19. Owing to India's size and population, the election period spans six weeks, during which people vote in phases. Journalists report on the ground amid the curbs and fear of suppression. According to Women Press Freedom’s findings, from January to April this year, at least five women journalists were targeted as a result of politically motivated threats.
Navigating election reporting as a woman journalist
In the run-up to the elections, journalists tell us about fears of impediments in reporting owing to the ruling party’s oppressive attitude towards media workers in the country, particularly women reporting on the ground.
Shreya Raman, an independent journalist based in Mumbai, is currently working with an online feminist media outlet Behenbox as part of their election coverage. In her six-year-long reporting career, Raman has covered gender, health, labor and other public policy issues, but this is the first election during which she is actively reporting from the field in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh states.
Commenting on reporting from a conflict-ridden area like Bastar, an area where Raman reported on the killing of Adivasis — members of an aboriginal community — in anti-naxal operations, she tells us: “Especially now when things are intensifying there. It will be a challenge on its own. But each location that I go to has its own challenges.”
Speaking with Women Press Freedom, the reporter adds that while she has not faced any security issues during her work in the field, she plans “a little bit more” to avoid difficulties because of her gender.
“Especially now when things are intensifying there. It will be a challenge on its own”
“I have to arrange things beforehand… I already speak to people who will help me at a certain location. My sources have always taken care of me. I wouldn't go to any place without confirming with my source again and again if they'll be available to help me,” she says, adding that she avoids reporting stories that may risk her safety in any way.
Aatreyee Dhar, an independent journalist from northeast India who covers environment, climate change, health, gender, and politics, echoes Raman’s sentiments regarding the safety of women journalists, particularly those working independently, to Women Press Freedom.
“This is the risk that we face. Even if I write something uncontroversial, I may get sued if my sources for a story consider it controversial. In such a situation, I don't have the resources to fight my case or no editor signing up for me,” she said, responding to a question by Women Press Freedom.
“Even if I write something uncontroversial, I may get sued if my sources for a story consider it controversial. In such a situation, I don’t have the resources to fight my case or no editor signing up for me”
One of her primary concerns regarding the election reporting was the lack of on-record interviews with government officials and BJP members, as most of them, she adds, were not open to being quoted.
“If you quote them, they can threaten. Usually, they will take action without any reason. I have faced that a lot. When I'm writing, I just have to think of ways to strike a balance,” Dhar, who is based in the largest city in India’s northeastern state Assam Guwahati, tells us.
Following such limitations, she laments, people are not receiving the reality that they're seeking out through her report. The journalist has been asked by government officials and political party members not to quote them on anything that may seem “controversial.”
“When you're writing about the party in power, which is BJP, these people don't want to be quoted.”
She also speaks about feeling safe with locals when reporting on the ground, as opposed to those in higher positions or those working in the government.
She explains that being soft-spoken and patient with such sources puts her at a disadvantage, as journalists like her are not taken seriously by them.
“They treat you as not that important because you are a kind, humble and modest woman that doesn’t fight and only waits for their quotes. This is the disadvantage I have always felt,” she says.
“They treat you as not that important because you are a kind, humble and modest woman that doesn’t fight and only waits for their quotes. This is the disadvantage I have always felt,”
Describing her vulnerability as a freelance journalist working on political stories, Dhar has received unsolicited phone calls from politicians. “It is annoying to me that you have to continue with [such situations] in this profession.”
However, the journalist continues with her work with the belief that independent media can at least call on the powerful people, take them to task and hold truth to power.
Fear to report as a Kashmiri-Muslim journalist
Just days ahead of the vote in India, the Kashmiri-Muslim journalist — who has been reporting since 2016 on politics, conflict, and border disputes — tells Women Press Freedom he will be reporting on elections from every state for the first time but will remain “every cautious” while he does that to ensure safety, particularly due to his religious and ethnic identity.
“As a Kashmiri journalist I have to think ten times more than going to the ground and reporting stories. For example, I’m headed to an assignment tomorrow in a North Indian state. And I’m really trying to make all arrangements and trying to figure out all the ways by which I will not invite a lot of trouble,” he tells us.
The journalist added that he is more skeptical and worried about safety issues in northern parts of the country, such as Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Maharashtra (a part of it), Madhya Pradesh, and surrounding areas. “I will be less afraid in southern states, which seems like the tensions there are less as compared to northern India.”
“As a Kashmiri journalist I have to think ten times more than going to the ground and reporting stories”
He believes that press freedom in India is under attack.
“I have been reporting in Kashmir, and things are much worse there, but things are also headed that way in mainland India it seems. In Kashmir, independent, critical press has been made ineffective practically. It is impossible to report something critical of the government,” he maintains, highlighting that journalists are willingly not reporting on critical stories from the disputed valley to protect themselves.
While the situation in mainland India is not as harrowing as in Kashmir, it is headed in the same direction, the reporter tells us, citing “huge self-censorship because of the threat of repercussions” after Modi’s retention of power.
“The BJP government has been repeatedly taking measures where one feels it is very difficult to report in India. There have been raids on some news organizations, some journalists have been raided. Their electronic devices have been confiscated,” he explains, terming the situation “scary.”
The Kashmiri journalist does not have much hope. “Till the Modi regime is around, it seems that things are going to get much more difficult in coming years.”
“By all parameters, talking to people, and analysts, it seems Modi is winning another term with many more seats than he previously received. And it seems that at the heart of it is the right-wing Hindutva agenda which has been working for Mr Modi and his party,” he says.
Treading on a perilous path amid rising threats
The state of press freedom in India is increasingly dangerous. Journalism remains marred by threats, self-censorship, and government suppression, with the general elections amplifying these obstacles. We have documented at least five women journalists being severaly impeded, including deportation, denied entry into the country, and legally harassed.
French journalist Vanessa Dougnac, who had lived in India for 22 years, was threatened with deportation by the Indian government, we found, which labeled her work “malicious and critical.” The government denied her a work visa and revoked her Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI) card, forcing the journalist to eventually leave the country she had called her home for over two decades.
A local journalist from the Gujarat state, Jashoda Desai, was slapped with defamation after she questioned a BJP politician’s qualification on social media. Meanwhile, British-Kashmiri Professor Nitasha Kaul was denied entry to India after she arrived at the Bengaluru Airport on February 25 to attend a conference in Karnataka. Kaul said she received discriminatory treatment for “being critical” of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government.
Australian journalist Avani Dias, who works as the South Asia correspondent for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), left India on the day when elections began in the country. Dias departed after Indian authorities cited her reporting on sensitive topics, including the killing of a Sikh separatist leader, as the primary reason for denying her a visa extension. She was told her reporting “crossed a line.”
Other instances of intimidation faced by local journalists in India involved their reporting related to ministers of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), such as the threats directed at seasoned journalist Neha Purav, who was warned by unknown men about her reporting on a BJP minister in Mumbai. Some of these instances took place before the election even began, while some were reported during the polls.
The situation in which the Kashmiri journalist, Raman, and Dhar are reporting calls for extreme caution as they continue to report in the politically-charged parts of the country. The actions of the Modi administration against India’s press signal a worrying trajectory for the state of press freedom.
We must acknowledge the courage and faith of journalists who, despite the dismaying landscape, remain resolute in striving to tell the truth while navigating safety concerns amid a lack of institutional backing.
Women Press Freedom is an initiative by The Coalition For Women In Journalism
The Coalition For Women In Journalism is a global organization of support for women journalists. The CFWIJ pioneered mentorship for mid-career women journalists across several countries around the world and is the first organization to focus on the status of free press for women journalists. We thoroughly document cases of any form of abuse against women in any part of the globe. Our system of individuals and organizations brings together the experience and mentorship necessary to help female career journalists navigate the industry. Our goal is to help develop a strong mechanism where women journalists can work safely and thrive.
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