Journalist Booked For ‘Glorifying Terrorism’

Fahad Shah has been booked for glorifying terrorism, spreading fake news and inciting the general public in Jammu and Kashmir (Photo: Twitter/@pzfahad)

Journalist Fahad Shah, who was arrested by police on Friday, has been booked for glorifying terrorism, spreading fake news and inciting the general public against law and order in Jammu and Kashmir, police said on Saturday.

A case has been registered against Shah at Safakadal Police Station and Pulwama Police Station, they said.

Police said for the last three-four years, Fahad Shah has been frequently glorifying terrorism, spreading fake news and inciting people towards creating law and order problems, for which three FIRs have been lodged against him – one in Srinagar, one in Pulwama and the other in Shopian.

“He has been arrested in the case FIR lodged in Pulwama. Action will follow in other FIRs also,” Kashmir IGP Vijay Kumar said. Kumar made an appeal to journalists to not spread fake news and verify information from police before circulating.

“It glorifies terrorists because it leads to recruitment, our youth get radicalised and take the wrong path. Do not instigate the public,” he said.

Shah is the founder editor of weekly online magazine “thekashmirwalla”.

Providing details, a police spokesman said in a statement, “It was reliably learnt by Pulwama Police that some Facebook users and portals have been uploading anti national content including photographs, videos and posts with criminal intention to create fear among public and the content so uploaded can provoke the public to disturb law & order.”

“It was also learnt that these Facebook users are uploading such posts which tantamount to glorifying the terrorist activities and causing dent to the image of law enforcing agencies besides causing ill-will & disaffection against the country.”

“As the aforementioned activities by some of the Facebook users amounts to commission of cognizable offences by them, accordingly Pulwama Police, while taking cognizance of the matter, registered a case vide FIR No. 19/2022 under relevant sections of the law and initiated the investigation,” read the statement further.