On the occasion of World Press Freedom Day on 3 May, South Asia Media Defenders Network (SAMDEN) and Himal Southasian present #JournalistsOnTrial – a collaborative effort to document legal attacks against journalists across the region, starting with Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

Violence and physical reprisals against journalists and media organisations working in Southasia are not new. Neither are the instances of intimidation by the state and imprisonment of journalists. However, what is increasingly becoming common, and yet not adequately reported and documented, are the legal and bureaucratic tools used to silence journalistic voices.

There is a growing pattern of governments and corporations in Southasia – and indeed, around the world – of abusing laws on cybersecurity, national defence and defamation to stifle journalistic work. Governments rely less on overt censorship, and instead pursue ‘legal’ routes – including false and malicious cases – to attack journalists and media groups, circumventing the usual protections afforded by press laws. Large corporations, meanwhile, have taken to bombarding journalists and media organisations with drawn-out, exhausting and expensive lawsuits to drain their already limited resources.

In some cases, such lawsuits are not directly related to journalistic work and it is extremely difficult to determine whether the case is a legally sound one, or an abuse of the law. However, a simple documentation of such cases can illustrate the pattern behind such attacks, which readers can draw their own conclusions from, for it is often the process and not the outcome of such legal attacks that is the killer.

The following database of cases against journalists, some of them ongoing, is by no means exhaustive. Documenting these cases was extremely difficult because of the limited reporting and the lack of information in the public domain. It is, however, a step in highlighting the many ways in which litigious harassment is being used to attack free and independent media and we invite you to build this list by adding cases or sending us further information on the cases we have listed so far. You can do that by emailing contact@samden.org.

Bangladesh

In Bangladesh, litigious harassment as well as arrests of journalists are frequent. Until recently, these were carried out largely under Section 57 of the infamous Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Act. The best-known instance of such prosecution was the arrest and detention of photojournalist and educator Shahidul Alam, who was in jail for over 100 days after an interview criticising the government’s handling of protestors and Facebook posts on the issue. In October 2018, the country adopted a new law, called the Digital Security Act, whose overbroad provisions are expected to further narrow journalistic freedom in Bangladesh.

Name Organisation Date Party Charge Law/Case/Action Status
Mahmudur Rahman Amar Desh April 1, 2013 Unconfirmed Sedition Sedition Act Out on bail
Kanak Sarwar Ekushey Television March 1, 2015 Unconfirmed Sedition and publishing explicit content Sedition Act and Pornorgraphy Act Out on bail
Rimon Rahman Amader Rajshahi September 1, 2015 Border Guards Bangladesh Drug possesion Unconfirmed Unconfirmed
Mahfuz Anam The Daily Star February 1, 2016 Multiple Up to 84 cases Multiple Other
Siddiqur Rahman Khan Dainikshiksha September 1, 2016 Professor Fahima Khatun Khan Defamation, publishing fictitious, false and shameful news ICT Act Out on bail
Nazmul Huda Ekushey Television December 1, 2016 Police Inciting labour unrest ICT Act Unconfirmed
Mostafij Mishu Dainik Alokito Bangladesh March 1, 2017 Minarul Islam Unconfirmed ICT Act Unconfirmed
Morsalin Babla Juger Chinta March 1, 2017 Sohel Ali Unconfirmed ICT Act Unconfirmed
Hasan Ali Bangla Vision & bdnews24 March 1, 2017 Hasibur Rahman Rizu Derogatory posts on Facebook ICT Act Unconfirmed
Aslam Ali Darpan March 1, 2017 Hasibur Rahman Rizu Derogatory posts on Facebook ICT Act Unconfirmed

India

In India, journalists frequently face harassment through civil and criminal defamation lawsuits, often from corporate entities or politicians, in response to coverage of corruption scandals. Also called SLAPP suits (acronym for ‘Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation’), these are intended to put a stop on investigative journalism by burdening the journalists and publications with resource-draining lawsuits, often filed in multiple locations around the country. The state also had a wide array of laws in its arsenal. Journalists are targeted under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, the Information Technology Act and several provisions of the Indian Penal Code.

Name Organisation Date Party Charge Law/Case/Action Status
Aseem Trivedi Freelance cartoonist September 1, 2012 Amit Katarnayea Making seditious cartoon Indian Penal Code, National Embled Act, IT Act and National Honour Act Other
Krishn Kaushik The Caravan August 1, 2015 Essar Group Defamation Civil lawsuit Other
Prabhat Singh Patrika March 1, 2016 Chattisgarh Police Circulating confrontational material IT Act Out on bail
Josy Joseph The Hindu December 1, 2016 Naresh Goyal, Jet Airways Defamation Civil lawsuit Other
Paranjoy Guha Thakurta EPW July 1, 2017 Adani Group Criminal defamation Indian Penal Code Other
Kamran Yousuf Freelance photojournalist September 1, 2017 National Investigative Agency (NIA) Stonepelting and conspiracy Unlawful Activities Prevention Act Out on bail
Vinod Verma BBC October 1, 2017 Chattisgarh Police Extortion, inimidation, publishing sexually explicit material Indian Penal Code Out on bail
Bala G Cartoonist November 1, 2017 Tirunelveli collector Sandeep Nanduri Criminal defamation Indian Penal Code, IT Act Out on bail
Rachna Khaira The Tribune January 1, 2018 Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) Forgery, cheating and impersonation Indian Penal Code, IT Act Other
Swathi Vadlamudi The Hindu April 1, 2018 Hindu Sangathan, Hyderabad Hurting religious sentiments Indian Penal Code Other

Nepal

Journalists in Nepal face a high number of defamation suits under the Electronic Transactions Act, which has become a convenient tool to bypass press protections. As a result, many defamation cases against journalists are also filed using this act, often against the publication of critical articles online, or for reposting it on social media. More recently, the judiciary has also shown interest in pursuing contempt-of-court case against journalists investigating educational qualifications of the chief justice. The court also attempted to restrict the newspaper from doing further reporting on the issue. The new Criminal Code, which came into effect in August 2018, contain provisions that further restrict journalism.

Name Organisation Date Party Charge Law/Case/Action Status
Sushil Pant Nepaliheadlines June 1, 2019 Kanya Multiple Campus Defamed the plaintiff Electronic Transactions Act Unconfirmed
Santosh Bhattarai Nepaliheadlines June 1, 2013 Kanya Multiple Campus Defamed the plaintiff Electronic Transactions Act Unconfirmed
Pushkar Nath Kandel Extrakhabar June 1, 2013 Kanya Multiple Campus Defamed the plaintiff Electronic Transactions Act Unconfirmed
Dinesh Acharya Share Bazaar Weekly September 1, 2013 Nirvan Chaudhary Defamed the plaintiff Electronic Transactions Act Other
Kanak Mani Dixit Himal Media April 1, 2016 Commission of Investigation on Abuse of Authority (CIAA) Illegally amassing property and embezzlement CIAA Act and investigations by Land Revenue Office and Department of Revenue Investigation Other
Santosh Kumar Yadav Anukalpa November 1, 2016 Dev Kumar Yadav Defamed the plaintiff Electronic Transactions Act Other
Arjun Thapaliya Anukalpa November 1, 2016 Dev Kumar Yadav Defamed the plaintiff Electronic Transactions Act Other
Sudheer Sharma Kantipur May 1, 2017 Advocate Santosh Bhandari Contempt of court Justice Administration Act Other
Krishna Gyawali Kantipur May 1, 2017 Advocate Santosh Bhandari Contempt of court Justice Administration Act Other
Gopal Chand Postpati November 1, 2017 Spreading false information Electronic Transactions Act Released on bail Out on bail

Pakistan

Journalists in Pakistan face harassment form a variety of different legal instruments. These come overwhelmingly from the state, often with accusations of treason, disturbing public peace and involvement in terrorism-related activities. Most of these cases are pursued under the Anti-Terrorism Act, Electronic Crimes Act and Pakistan Penal Code. As many of the charges are serious offences, some journalists have spent months in detention and at least one of them is still in prison.

Name Organisation Date Party Charge Law/Case/Action Status
Zulqarnain Sheikh ARY News December 1, 2014 Pakistan Railways Arms smuggling Unconfirmed Other
Asif Qureshi ARY News December 1, 2014 Pakistan Railways Arms smuggling Unconfirmed Other
Hafiz Husnain Raza Nawa-i-Waqt April 1, 2016 Police Disturbing public peace and instigating terrorism Anti-Terrorism Act Out on bail
Daulat Jan Mathal Daily Bang-e-Sahar, Baang and the Broshal Times October 1, 2016 Government of Gilgit-Baltistan Publishing and distributing anti-state material Ant-Terrorism Act Out on bail
Shabbir Siham Daily Times March 1, 2018 Iqbal Hassan Fabricating news and extorting a regional minister Pakistan Penal Code and Anti-Terrorism Act Unconfirmed
Cyril Almeida Dawn September 1, 2018 Lahore High Court Treason High Treason (Punishment) Act Other
Muhammad Qasim Qasimi GB News and Tehreer News November 1, 2018 Government of Gilgit-Baltistan Criminal intimidation, insult, defamation, threat, and obstructing discharge of public functions Pakistan Penal Code Other
Rizwan-ur-Rehman Razi Din News February 1, 2019 Federal Investigation Agency Defamed state institutions Pakistan Penal Code and Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act Out on bail
Shahzeb Jillani Dunya News April 1, 2019 Moulvi Muhammad Iqbal Haider Defamed state institutions Pakistan Penal Code and Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act Out on bail

Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka has had relatively few reported cases of legal harassment against journalists since the end of the 30-year-long armed conflict in 2009. Journalists in Sri Lanka are rarely subject to criminal defamation suits as those laws were repealed in 2002. The harassment of journalists, however, comes in the form of threats and detentions by various security forces and investigative departments. As these actions are taken without pressing any charges, it is difficult to accurately document the extent of legal harassments journalists and publications face.

Name Organisation Date Party Charge Law/Case/Action Status
J.S. Tissainayagam Outreach SL / Sunday Times March 1, 2008 Terrorist Investigation Division Causing communal disharmony Prevention of Terrorism Act Other
Bennett Rupasinghe Lanka E news March 1, 2011 Police Charged with threatening a man Unconfirmed Out on bail
N Logathayalan Uthayan April 1, 2015 Police Defamation/ false information Unconfirmed Out on bail
Sasikaran Punniyamurthi SBS Australia January 1, 2016 Criminal Investigation Department Unconfirmed Unconfirmed Out on bail
Pradeep Sandaruwan Senadeera LankaENews November 1, 2016 Gampaha Magistrate's Court Defamation and contempt of court Unconfirmed Unconfirmed