A Kashmiri journalist has claimed that he was stopped from going to Sri Lanka for news coverage and accused the authorities of harassing journalists from the Valley. In a video message, Aakash Hassan, a freelancer working with several foreign publications including the Guardian and Al Jazeera, said he was stopped by the immigration officials at the Delhi airport.
"They made me wait for five hours. After that, they gave me my visa and boarding card with a cancelled stamp and said I'm not allowed to travel. I was not given any reason why this happened, other than that there is "Look Out Circular (LOC)" issued against me," he said.
He said the officials, however, did not mention which agency had issued it.
Officials in the Jammu and Kashmir Police confirmed that Hassan had been placed on a no-fly list, reported news agency Press Trust of India.
This is not happening for the first time, Mr Hassan said. "Recently, one of my colleagues, Sana Irshad Matto, a Pulitzer Prize winning photojournalist, was similarly stopped at the Delhi airport," Mr Hasan said.
On July 2, Ms Mattoo was stopped when she was on her way to Paris to attend a book launch event and participate in a photography exhibition, PTI reported.
"I think there is a clear pattern to what is happening. I see it as thread of tactics which are used to harass journalists, especially Kashmiri journalists. We have seen earlier how journalists are summoned and harassed by the authorities. Stopping us from travelling abroad is part of that harassment. This is something shocking and worrying for me," added Mr Hassan.
People's Democratic Party chief and former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Mehbooba Mufti said stopping Mr Hassan from travelling abroad came at a time Chief Justice of India NV Ramana said independent journalism is the backbone of democracy.
"It's no secret that GOI wants to crush the very backbone and fourth pillar of our democracy because of its intolerance to the truth," she said in a tweet.
Earlier, some Kashmir journalists, activists and academicians were stopped at the airport too.
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