'A man committed suicide on Sunday morning in Una district of Himachal Pradesh after villagers allegedly taunted him over the spread of coronavirus post the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in New Delhi. Dilshad Muhamud hung himself from the roof of his house located at a hilltop in Bangarh village. The local police in-charge, Rakesh Kumar, who was present on the spot, said that Dilshad was taken by police to a regional hospital in Una on April 2 as he had come in contact with two persons who had attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation.
'On Wednesday, April 1, the Uttar Pradesh Police in Faizabad registered an FIR against The Wire on the complaint of an individual under Sections 188 and 505 (2) of the Indian Penal Code. Section 188 refers to disobedience of an order issued by a public servant and 505 (2) to “statements creating or promoting enmity, hatred or ill-will between classes”. The FIR cites a passage without mentioning the date or headline of the article it is drawn from... The founding editors of The Wire have issued a statement in response to the FIR, which is appended below...'
'As doctors in Kashmir complain of not having enough personal protection gear and N95 masks amid the coronavirus pandemic, the government on Wednesday issued an order, saying that "strict action will be initiated against such elements who resort to such uncalled for reporting to media.” A senior official said some of the doctors are disobeying the rules and instead of doing actual work during this pandemic, they are airing their views liberally about minor issues, which is creating confusion...'
'The Central Government has sought a direction from the Supreme Court that no media outlet should print, publish or telecast anything on COVID-19 without first ascertaining facts from the mechanism provided by the government. This prayer was made by the Centre in its status report filed in the SC in response to the PILs seeking directions for welfare of migrant workers, and measures to control the pandemic transmission...'
'Around six hours before Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a three-week nationwide lockdown, on 24 March, he personally asked over twenty owners and editors from the mainstream print media to publish positive stories about the COVID-19 pandemic. The owners and editors represented media organisations working in 11 different languages, including the senior-most members of national media houses such as the Indian Express Group, the Hindu Group and the Punjab Kesari Group.
'The journalist who wrote about members of the Musahar community eating grass in villages around the prime minister’s parliamentary constituency Varanasi has been served a notice by the district administration for spreading misinformation. Vijay Vineet, news editor of Jansandesh time, a 16-page newspaper which has five editions in the state, had filed a report with his colleague Manish Mishra about families in Koiripur village (Baragaon block) subsisting on the grass on March 26. The report was accompanied by pictures of children eating grass.
'In a case of media vigilantism, a reporter from news channel Republic TV was spotted live on March 24 standing by a team of policemen at the DND flyover which connects Delhi to Noida in Uttar Pradesh, heckling a doctor on his way to work for ‘violating the lockdown’. When the senior doctor, Anish Singhal, who is the director and medical superintendent of the Employees State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) Hospital in Noida, showed the reporter his identity card, the reporter termed it ‘fake’. In fact, the channel ran a banner which said, “A man shows fake ID card and tries to venture out”.
'Despite journalists, doctors, nurses and health workers being exempted from the state lock down as they are enlisted under ‘essential services' by the Telangana government, several reports have emerged of them being attacked by the police on the first day of curfew. Curfew has been imposed in the state from 7 pm to 6 am as part of the lockdown. On Monday, Bureau Chief of The Hindu, Ravi Reddy was physically assaulted and abused by the Begumpet police, for being on the road, during the curfew hours. Reddy was returning home after work.
'Police in Hyderabad and Delhi assaulted at least four journalists yesterday, as India began a nationwide lockdown to contain the spread of the coronavirus, according to news reports and journalists who spoke to CPJ. The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting issued a statement yesterday, reiterating that journalists are exempt from the lockdown and are free to do their work without any restriction.
'As the first COVID-19 case was officially confirmed from Srinagar on Wednesday and the Valley was subsequently locked down again, the doctors, healthcare workers, researchers and students in Kashmir are taking to social media to raise concerns about restricted information due to slow speed internet. They’re demanding restoration of full-speed 4G internet so that people can be better informed and get critical information about the coronavirus pandemic. “This is so frustrating. Trying to download the guidelines for intensive care management as proposed by doctors in England.
