Katju concerned over violation of press freedom

NEW DELHI: Press Council of India (PCI) chairman Justice Markandey Katju on Friday expressed concerns over violation of constitutional right to freedom of the press in certain states. He said that such acts will not be tolerated and strong action will be taken by the Council wherever rights are being infringed.

He was reacting to reports received by the PCI about physical assaults on journalists or media establishments by various government agencies and other organisations. The Council has also received complaints about breach of rights of the press by way of withholding government advertisements and facilities to a newspaper if it has been critical of the government.

Justice Katju said he has issued strong letters to the chief ministers of Jammu & Kashmir, Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh in this regard. " I have also sent a letter to the chief minister of West Bengal objecting to the new rules regarding accreditation of journalists, some of which are likely to adversely affect the freedom of the press ," he said in a statement.

Under Section 13(1) of the Press Council Act, 1978, it is the duty of the Press Council to preserve the freedom of the Press. "Since I feel that this freedom is under threat in many states I intend to send fact finding teams to some of the states from where we are getting a large number of such complaints. I have sought the opinion of the members of the Press Council in this connection," Justice Katju said.