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| early Times turns 13 | | |
Your newspaper Early Times has turned 13-years old. It has been a long journey since July 24, 2002, when this 12-page English daily hit the newsstands. The overwhelming response of our esteemed readers and the faith they reposed on us have been our strength. It's due to the acceptance of our readers that Early Times has become one of the largest circulated dailies in Jammu and Kashmir.
We also take pride in informing our readers that www.alexa.com and some other credible organizations have placed us at No. 1 position in Jammu and Kashmir in terms of web readership, i.e. number of hits per day on our web page as compared to our competitors, for the past more than six months.
The 13-year journey of the newspaper has been arduous and full of challenges. The ET since its inception has always sided with the truth and has withstood immense pressures and intimidations to ensure that truth doesn't become causality.
The bold reporting and people friendly approach of the Early Times turned the newspaper into the eyesore for certain elements within the administrative and political set-up of Jammu and Kashmir. These elements left no stone unturned to somehow turn the Early Times into their mouth piece and prevent it from raising the issues which touch the skin of a common man.
In complete breach of democratic norms people at the helm have humiliated and harassed the management of Early Times on many occasions to ensure that newspaper toes their line, but we have remained steadfast on our resolve and have foiled their nefarious designs.
Our only fault seemingly is that we have never compromised on truth nor have we ever accepted anybody's hegemony. Our refusal to act as a stooge and become a propaganda tool has always annoyed the men in power. During past 13-years government has stopped the advertisements on many occasions just to ensure that we fall in line. But we have never budged, nor would we ever in future also.
Besides Early Times our other business enterprises have also been targeted. Certain agencies at the behest of detractors of Early Times left no stone unturned to intimidate and target us.
The grave story about how we were penalized for siding with the truth began on November 26, 2010 when government stopped the advertisements without assigning any specific reason. Our ordeal began with the publication of a news item of an alleged attack on a temple at Anantnag in south Kashmir. The report was based on official handout issued by Police Control Room (PCR) Srinagar. The same was carried by other publications also. On the pretext of this news item, both our printing press and newspaper office were sealed on July 1, 2010 vide order DCJ/camp/2010/001-03. No notice was served. We were handed copy of this order much later. After intense persecution at both personal and official level, we were allowed to resume both printing and publication of the newspaper vide govt. order no. DCJ/PA/2010-11/151-156 dated 06-07-2010. However, some days later, a criminal case was registered against us under section 505. Thereafter, taking cognizance of a news item, though based on facts, published on September 18, 2010; police registered another case, for which Editor-in-Chief and Managing Editor had to seek bail from the court. Management particularly Editor was frequently summoned to the Police station and treated like a criminal. Police forced Editor-in-Chief and Managing Editor of the newspaper to give fingerprints on blank papers on November 21, 2010. To intimidate the Editor-in-Chief and the Managing Editor authorities even impounded their passports.
This was done in full public glare and more importantly, in the presence of several media persons, both from print and electronic media. The management and staff had to bear this grave humiliation. Not only this, our reporters were harassed and rumors of the closure of Early Times newspaper were spread on routine basis alongside leaking falsified reports of our staffers indulging in bad behavior and brawls.
When the management sought concrete and pointed references of the same, we would be explicitly told that it was being done to ensure compliance of directions from the higher-ups. Following on, Police and officials of CID started surveillance of Editor's home.
Two bars namely Royal Bar and Cannon Bar, both located in city's busiest trade centers, were seized without any formal government notice on December 2, 2010. It took 21 days for the management to get the bars reopened. The 21 day closure had serious impact on the business .A day after opening of the two bars, employees working in one of the two bars were picked-up by police on the basis of an FIR lodged by anonymous persons on December 24, 2010. When the owners sought details, the same were denied to them.
The employees were kept in illegal confinement for three days and then released on 27-12-2010. Thereafter, certain miscreants openly grabbed around 45 kanals of land whose legal ownership is with the owner of ET Bansi Lal Gupta. Concerned police station did nothing to stop open land grabbing despite High Court notice. Forty one days after the unjustifiable and highly condemnable Royal Bar incident, two Canon Bar employees were again arrested in a fabricated case.
Canon Bar episode at ware house was repeat of Royal Bar incident. In both cases, innocent waiters were booked and accused were set free. Police action was totally unjustifiable, unreasonable, illegal, unfounded and hence, was also condemned by one and all in strongest possible words. We have reasons to raise questions over the manner in which we are singled out and brutalized.
Early Times besides facing the brunt of the government agencies has also faced threats from the anti-national elements. On August 21, 2014 ET received an e-mail from one Umar Gul, threatening ET management of dire consequences if the newspaper did not stop writing against Hurriyat hardliner Syed Ali Shah Geelani.
The e-mail didn't stop Early Times from reporting the truth and exposing the anti-national elements, nor did it stop the newspaper from writing against the separatists who have been preaching secessionism and violence in the Valley to fill their own coffers.
Soon after ET received the e-mail, the management informed the police and filed a formal complaint with senior police officers, including then IGP- Jammu Rajesh Kumar, who later forwarded it to SOG (Special Operation Group) of police to examine the e-mail and lay hands on the accused.
The SOG expressed its inability to lay hands on the e-mail sender, saying it had come from a foreign-based network. Till date no headway has been made to trace the culprit nor does anyone know the status of the investigation.
Despite facing all the odds we have remained firm on our resolve and the overwhelming support of our readers has kept us going. We hope that our esteemed readers would keep on supporting the truth and would make their newspaper stronger than before. We are thankful to our readers and well wishers for turning Early Times into one of the largest circulated dailies in Jammu and Kashmir.
—Editor |
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