MEDIA RIGHTS VIOLATIONS IN SOUTH ASIA BY
JOURNALISTS’ SAFETY INDICATORS (JSI)

August 4, 2021: Helmand (E)
Sabawoon TV correspondent Maiwand Mirni is abducted by the Taliban in Helmand province.

December 2021: Kabul
Javid Yousefi, of Ofogh and Ayneh TV, is stabbed by three unidentified people with knives and sustains severe injuries.

July 26, 2021: Southern Kandahar (A)
Four Afghan journalists are arrested by Afghanistan’s National Directorate of Security (NDS) for allegedly favouring Taliban militants and propagandising against Afghanistan’s national interest. The arrested journalists are Bismillah Watandoost, Qudrat Soltani and Mujib Obaidi, of Millat Zagh Radio; and Sanaullah Siam, of Xinhua News Agency

August 1, 2021: Herat (A)
Taliban members fire on the car of Shakib Shams, a reporter for Salam Watandar, and Storio Karimi, of Pajhwok Afghan News, as they report on fighting between Afghan National Security Forces and the Taliban. The two journalists are taken for questioning and released 20 minutes later.

August 25, 2021: Kandahar (A)
The Taliban detain and confiscate the phones of Pakistani journalists Abdul Mateen Achakzai and Muhummad Ali, of Khyber TV, for allegedly not securing Taliban approval to report in Afghanistan.

August 26, 2021: Kabul (A) (E)
Muhummad Iqbal Mengal, a reporter for Pakistan’s 92 News group, is reported missing and suspected of being detained by the Taliban following the Kabul airport bombing the same day.

September 6, 2021: Kapisa (A)
Farhad Behrooz, an Asia Press reporter, is temporarily detained by the Taliban in Kapisa province.

September 7, 2021: Kabul (A)
The Taliban  prevent media personnel from covering an anti-Pakistan demonstration in Kabul, seizing camera equipment and detaining several journalists and photographers. TOLOnews photographer Waheed Ahmadi and Ariana News correspondent Sami Jahesh are among those arrested while covering the protest.

December 11, 2021: Kabul (A)
Sayed Rashed Kashefi, a reporter with Kabul Times and Rasa TV, is beaten and detained by the Taliban for more than six hours while covering a fight at an aid distribution site in Kabul’s District 5.

December 19, 2021: Kunduz (A)
Faisal Nouri, of Peshgo News Agency and Shabnam Radio, is arrested by the Taliban and released after six hours. Taliban officials call the journalist’s arrest a ‘misunderstanding’.

December 21, 2021: Balkh (A) (F)
Khalil Fitri, of Pajhwok Afghan News, is arrested by the provincial intelligence department on alleged money laundering charges. She is released on January 9, 2022, after three weeks of detention.

December 21, 2021: Kabul (A) (F)
Marza Hussain Sadid, of Virma Investigation News Agency, is arrested in Kabul’s District 13 while distributing aid materials to families. Authorities release her an hour later, calling her arrest a ‘misunderstanding’.

December 22, 2021: Paktia (A)
Habibullah Sarab, a reporter for the Ettelaat-e-Rooz newspaper, is arrested by the Paktia Intelligence Department and released about an hour later.

December 22, 2021: Paktia (A)
Pajhwok Afghan News correspondent Sahel Mangal is detained by the Paktia Intelligence Department and released six days later. Authorities allege the arrest was for non-media related issues.

December 26, 2021: North-western Kabul (A)
A group of alleged Taliban militia raid and search the home of Noorin Television journalist Haji Arif Noori in Kabul’s Karte Parwan area before taking him to an unknown location.

December 28, 2021: Kabul (A)
The Taliban detain Ariana News journalist Shapoor Farahmand as he returns home. The Taliban check through the journalist’s phone and interrogate him, before releasing him after two hours.

December 30, 2021: Bamiyan (A)
Sayed Ahmad Mousavi, a reporter for Tamadon TV is detained by the Amina governor and released shortly after. His camera is confiscated a week later.

January 6, 2022: North-western Kabul (A)
The Taliban detain three journalists, Faisal Modaris, Idris Rahimi and Milad Azizi, of YouTube channel Kabul Lovers. The journalists are detained at a restaurant in the Shari Naw area of Kabul’s District 4. The journalists had recently covered protests in the Panjshir province, reporting residents’ criticism of the Taliban.

January 21, 2022: Kabul (A)
The Taliban detain journalist Aslam Hijab at the entrance of the Ariana News headquarters in Kabul’s District 3. Waris Hasrat, another journalist from the station, is also detained after he inquires about the reason for Aslam Hijab’s detention. The journalists are handcuffed, their heads covered with sacks and they are forced into a vehicle.

February 16, 2021: Kabul (A)
Qais Zaki, the former head of Khavar TV; Abbas Pouya, reporter for Rah-e-Farda TV; Zahedullah Samadzi, a reporter for Pakistan 92 TV; and Ahmad Basir Ahmadi, a correspondent for Ayna TV; are attacked and arrested by the Taliban in Kabul.

February 21, 2022: Kabul (A)
Sahar TV reporter Aminullah Samsour is arrested by the Taliban in Kabul.

March 3, 2022: Kabul (A)
Noor TV reporter Shams Amani is detained by Taliban officers.

March 16, 2022: Kabul (A)
Senior media managers Sayyaf Mohammadi, Rafiullah Karimi and Shams Amani are arrested. The men work for Arezoo, One TV, Shamshad and TOLONews.

March 17, 2022: Kabul (A)
The Taliban arrests TOLOnews media worker Khaplwak Safi and news consultant Nafe Khaliq.

March 17, 2022: Kabul (A)
The Taliban arrest and detain TOLOnews staffers during a raid on its Kabul headquarters, after the outlet published a story on the Taliban’s ban of a foreign television series. Announcer Bahram Aman is held for 21 hours, while news correspondent Khaplwak Safi and the channel’s legal advisor, Nafay Khaleeq, are released after a few hours of questioning.

March 17, 2022: Nangarhar (A)
Atal Khan Stanekzai, the head of Hamishe Bahar TV is arrested by the Taliban in Nangarhar.

March 28, 2022: Kandahar (A)
The Taliban arrest the head of Sada-e Mellat Radio, Bismillah Watandust, as well as media workers Farid Ali Zai, Mahmoud Mehraban, Aghashir Minar, Rahimullah Mehraban, Samiullah Vahdat in Kandahar.

March 28, 2022: Kabul (A)
Radio Salam Watandar reporter Sarwar Hashemi is arrested by the Taliban.

March 26, 2022: Urozgan (A)
Reporter Faridullah Mati is arrested by the Taliban

March 26, 2022: Kandahar (A)
Radio Zama reporter Mirwais Atel is arrested in Kandahar by the Taliban.

April 6, 2022: Ghor (A)
Reporters Gul Ahmad Khesraw and Ghulam Rabbani Hadafmand are arrested at by the Taliban at the province’s office of photography.

April 17, 2022: Nangarhar (A) (C)

Elham Haqeeqat, owner of Radio Haqeeqat in Nangarhar province, is detained by the Taliban’s intelligence agency for covering anti-Pakistan protests.

April 18, 2022: Kabul (A)

Tamadon TV reporter Reza Shaher and cameraman Rohulah Noori are arrested by the Taliban while covering an explosion in western Kabul.

August 15, 2021: Nangarhar (C)
The Taliban removes Radio Television Afghanistan anchors Khadija Amin and Shabnam Dawran from their posts and takes them off air.

August 17, 2021: Nangarhar (C)
Ariana TV cameraperson Mahmoud Naimi and Pajhwok News cameraperson Babrak Amirzadeh are beaten by the Taliban as they report a protest against the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan.

August 18, 2021: Kabul
Khorshid TV journalist Ahmad Navid Kavosh is beaten with a whip by a Taliban member at Hamid Karzai Airport while trying to interview another Taliban member.

August 18, 2021: Location protected (C)
The houses of at least three Deutsche Welle (DW) staffers are raided by the Taliban. None of the employees are home during the raids.

August 20, 2021: Unknown location (C)
Taliban militants raid the home of Zalmai Lofti, the head of Enikaas TV, taking his car and other office equipment.

September 6, 2021: Balkh (C)
Taliban member assault Taher Sadid, a correspondent for Khurshid TV; Najibullah Faryad, a reporter for Ariana TV; and Abdolaziz Karimi, a reporter for TV One in Balkh province.

September 7, 2021: Kabul
Five local media reporters and one camera operator are beaten by the Taliban while covering an anti-Pakistan protest in Kabul.

September 8, 2021: Kabul
At least 14 journalists and camera operators are assaulted by the Taliban while covering a women’s rights demonstration and protest against Pakistan’s Intelligence Agency.

September 8, 2021: Western Kabul (A)
Journalists Taqi Daryabi and Nematullah Naqdi, of Etilaatroz Daily, are arrested and assaulted with sticks and cable wire by the Taliban while reporting on a women’s protest in the Karte Char region of Western Kabul.

September 11, 2021: Lashkar Gah
Rostam TV reporter Mahboob-ur-Rehman Sanaei is beaten by the Taliban.

September 11, 2021: Parwan (C)
Danish TV correspondent Maqbol Noori is beaten by the Taliban.

September 11, 2021: Kabul
A reporter for Russian news agency Sputnik is beaten by the Taliban in Kabul

September 11, 2021: Paktia (C)
Dawood Tepan, a reporter for Azadi Radio, is beaten by the Taliban.

October 25, 2021: Kabul
Abdul Khaliq Hosseini, a Khama Press reporter, is beaten by the Taliban in Kabul.

October 30, 2021: Kabul
Ali Reza Sharifi, a camera operator for Iranian Radio and Television, is injured by unknown individuals in Kabul.

October 21, 2021: Kabul
The Taliban beat several print and electronic media journalists to prevent them from covering a women’s protest in Kabul. AFP photojournalist Bülent Kiliç and Afghan News Agency reporter Shafiullah Kakar are among those attacked.

October 24, 2021: Torkham, Khyber District (C)
Sadaqat Ghorzang, of TOLOnews, is beaten by border forces while covering the opening of the Torkham crossing point at the Afghanistan-Pakistan border.

November 1, 2021: Kabul
The Taliban arrests and threatens Hossein Ahmadi, a reporter for Pajhwok Afghan News.

January 10, 2022: Kabul
Noor Mohammad Hashemi, the deputy director of Salam Afghanistan Media Organisation, is attacked by three unidentified men who force the journalist from his vehicle and attempt to shoot him.

February 3, 2021: Ghazni (C)
Media workers Saifullah Maftoon, Rahmatullah Marjankhel and Allah Juma Zadeh are arrested and beaten by the Taliban in Ghazni province.

April 16, 2022: Kabul
Rasa TV journalist Jamshed Ahmad Ahmadi is beaten while returning home from work by unknown assailants.

April 17, 2022: Kabul
The Taliban beat 1TV presenter Muheb Jalili for his reporting.

May 6, 2021: Kandahar (C)
Former television journalist Nemat Rawan is killed by two motorcycle riders, who open fire at him while he is driving.

June 3, 2021: Northern Kabul (F)
Ariana TV presenter Mina Khairi is killed in a car bomb attack. The bombing targets a public minivan carrying the journalist, her mother, sister and other passengers when it exploded at around 2 pm.

June 9, 2021: Logar
Journalist Hafizullah Haqparast is killed in a crossfire between government forces and the Taliban outside his family home. He was not working at the time.

July 16, 2021: Kandahar
Reuters journalist Danish Siddiqui is killed in crossfire while covering a battle between Afghan soldiers and Taliban forces in Spin Boldak in Kandahar province. Siddiqui is embedded with a convoy of Afghan forces when it is ambushed by Taliban militants near a key border post with Pakistan.

August 2, 2021: Jalalabad
Amdadullah Hamdard, a translator and frequent contributor to Germany’s Die Zeit newspaper, was shot dead in the eastern Afghan city of Jalalabad.

August 8, 2021: Parwan
Unidentified gunmen shot Toofan Omar, manager of privately owned Paktia Ghag Radio, while he was travelling from Parwan Province to Kabul.

August 26, 2021: Kabul
Ali Reza Ahmadi, a reporter for Raha Press is killed in a suicide bombing in Kabul’s Hamid Karzai International Airport. Juhad Hamidi, a presenter with Jahan Television, is also among those killed, though it is not clear if he was reporting or among those trying to evacuate the country.

August 28, 2021: Kabul (F)
Jahan Sehat TV presenter Najma Sadeghi is killed in bomb blast at Hamid Karzai International Airport.

September 5, 2021: Panjshir Valley, Panjshir (C)
Fahim Dashti, a veteran leader of the Afghanistan National Journalist Union (ANJU) is killed during a clash between the National Resistance Front of Afghanistan (NRFA) and the Taliban. Dashit is among those leading a resistance movement to the Taliban in the Panjshir province at the time of the attack.

October 2, 2021: Nangarhar (C)
Media worker Sayed Maroof Sadat is one of four people killed in a drive-by shooting in Jalalabad, in Nangarhar Province in eastern Afghanistan.

November 13, 2021: Kabul
Journalist Hamid Saighani, of Ariana Television, is killed in a bomb blast on a minibus near a Taliban checkpoint in the Dasht-e Barchi area of western Kabul.

December 31, 2021: Firoz Koh, Ghor
Radio journalist Bismillah Adel Aimaq, editor-in-chief of Seday-e- Ghor(Voice of Ghor) radio, is shot and killed in a car ambush en route to Firoz Koh city, the capital of Ghor province.

July 20, 2021: Kapisa
Broadcasts from Radio Najarab cease after staffers flee to save their lives amid fighting between government security forces and the Taliban.

September 17, 2021: Kabul (I)
The Taliban detains a number of journalists, seizing their equipment and subjecting some individuals to torture or beatings. The following day it instructs telecommunications providers to cut internet and mobile service in some areas of Kabul.

September 19, 2021: Kabul (H)
The interim director of the Government Media and Information Centre (GMIC), Qari Mohammad Yousuf Ahmadi, announces 11 new media regulations for Afghanistan’s media, which can censor broadcast content and restrict press freedom.

November 21, 2021: Kabul (H)
The Taliban announces eight religious ‘guidelines’ which will restrict broadcasting of media that contravenes Islamic values, with several edicts exclusively targeting women journalists and media workers.

January 26, 2022: Kabul
The Taliban physically prevent a press conference on the crisis facing Afghan media workers at the headquarters of IFJ-affiliate, the Afghan National Journalists Union (ANJU).

March 27, 2022: National (H) (I)
The Taliban orders the shutdown of BBC and Voice of America (VoA) programs in Afghanistan. The broadcasters are taken off air following orders from the Taliban to remove all international broadcasters from Afghanistan’s airwaves.

March 28, 2022: National (H) (I)
The Taliban orders the shutdown of Deutsche Welle (DW) and China Global Television Network (CGTN) programs in Afghanistan. The broadcasters are taken off air following orders from the Taliban to remove all international broadcasters from Afghanistan’s airwaves.

May 22, 2021: Gangni, Meherpur, Khulna (A)
Journalist Al Amin Hossain is arrested at his home in Banshbaria, Gangni municipality, after allegedly publishing a false news report against local MP Maqbool Hossain in Meherpur Protidin newspaper.

July 10, 2021: Thakurgan, Rangpur (G)
Bangladesh authorities launch investigations into journalists Tanvir Hasan Tanu, Rahim Shuvo and Adbudl Latif Latu under the DSA after the journalists published reports about Sadar Hospital for alleged irregularities and corruption. The reports are published on Jago News, NewsBangla24.com, and Jugantor, the three news outlets the journalists work for.

July 18, 2021: Bogra Sadar Upzaila, Bogra, Rajshahi (A)
MD Akhtaruzzaman, a correspondent for Bengali-language daily newspaper Banijjo Pratidin, is arrested after publishing a Facebook post accusing a local minister of embezzling money.

October 5, 2021: Dhaka (D) (F) (G)
Nusrat Shahrin Raka, sister of exiled Bangladeshi journalist Kanak Sarwar, is arrested, along with her three children, by the Rapid Action Battalion for a fake Facebook profile created under her name publishing posts critical of authorities. She is granted bail after 160 days in detention.

November 8, 2021: Dhaka (G)
Dhaka Cyber Tribunal Judge, Ash Sams Joglul Hossain, files charges against photojournalist Shafiqul Islam Kajol for allegedly circulating defamatory material about various ministers and lawmakers on social media.

May 17, 2021: Shahbagh, Dhaka (F) (G)
Rozina Islam, an investigative journalist with Bangla daily Prothom Alo, is harassed and confined in a room in the Ministry of Health for allegedly stealing information and taking photographs of ministry documents. She is charged under the colonial era Official Secrets Act.

June 1, 2021: Brahmanbaria, Chittagong
Shahadat Hossain, a journalist for Bangla daily Prothom Alo, is attacked by a leader of the Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) while reporting on a protest inside a railway station at Brahmanbaria.

July 11, 2021: Barakhata, Lalmonirhat, Rangpur (C)
Selim Shamrat, a journalist for Bahannor Alo, is attacked while investigating a land grabbing incident in the Barakhata area. Shamrat says three land grabbers attacked him for no reason, pushed him to the ground and beat him.

April 13, 2022: Cumilla, Chittagong
Mohiuddin Sarkar Nayem of Dainik Cumillar Dak is shot dead by drug dealers allegedly for his reporting on illegal drug trafficking in the India-Bangladesh border area.

February 13, 2022: Narayanganj
Dainik Somoyer Narayanganj, a local newspaper, is raided and attacked by a group of armed assailants. The incident occurs after the paper reported on the involvement of Ajmeri Osman, the son of a late MP, in the murder of 17-year-old Tanwir Muhummad Taqi in 2013. The assailants threaten to burn the office down and shoot its editor.

April 4, 2022: Thimpu (H)
Two foresters are issued a compulsory retirement order by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forests after being accused of breaching Bhutan’s civil code of conduct by ‘approaching the media’. The two appeared in a story on the Bhutan Broadcasting Service (BBS) discussing an issue of excess staff deployment at the Ministry.

June 15, 2021: Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh (F) (G)
A criminal investigation is launched against Washington Post columnist Rana Ayyub; freelance journalist Saba Naqvi; and the co-founder of fact-checking website Alt News, Mohammed Zubair, for sharing video of a Muslim man being attacked. The complaint alleges that the journalists violated Sections 153, 153(A), 295(A), 505, and 120(B) of India’s Penal Code.

June 30, 2021: Delhi
Newsclick editor, Pranjal Pandey, and editor-in-chief, Prabir Purkayastha, are questioned for around five hours about their tax filings, transactions, contracts and syndicated content by India’s Income Tax Department.

July 4, 2021: Shahjahanpur, Uttar Pradesh (G)
Authorities launch defamation investigations into Newslaundry reporter Nidhi Suresh; Bhadas4Media reporter Manoj Shukla and Yashwant Singh, an editor for Bhadas4Media, under Sections 500 and 501 of the Indian Penal Code.

September 8, 2021: Srinagar, Jammu & Kashmir (B)
Showkat Motta, the editor of Kashmir Narrator; Hilal Mir, a reporter for Turkey-based news outlet TRT World; and freelance journalists Azhar Qadri and Abbas Shah have documents and electronic equipment seized by Jammu and Kashmir authorities during a raid on their homes.

September 16, 2021: Bhopal, Haryana (A)
Dainik Bhaskar editor, Sandeep Sharma, is charged and reporter Sunil Brar is arrested over a report error misidentified the location of a suspect’s arrest.

October 8, 2021: Jammu & Kashmir (A)
Freelance journalist and contributor to private news websites The Kashmiriyat and Maktoob Media, Suhail Dar, is detained by Kashmir authorities and charged under sections 107 and 151 of the Indian Penal Code for allegedly disturbing public peace.

October 12, 2021: Jammu & Kashmir (A)
Journalist Salman Shah, of Kashmir First, is detained by the authorities and charged under sections 107 and 151 of the Indian Penal Code for allegedly disturbing public peace.

October 13, 2021: Srinagar, Jammu & Kashmir (A)
BBC photojournalist Mukhtar Zahoor is detained by armed officials and police during a midnight raid of his home. Police seize his camera and do not specify a reason for the detainment

October 13, 2021: Jammu & Kashmir (B)
Freelance journalist Majid Hyderi is summoned for questioning by the Special Operations Group of Jammu and Kashmir police for his social media activities. He is released the same day.

October 13, 2021: Jammu & Kashmir (B)
Freelance journalist Sajad Gul is summoned by Hajin police for questioning in relation to a news report and a video posted to his Twitter profile. Gul is questioned about his journalism work and released after an hour.

October 25, 2021: Raipur, Chhattisgarh (A)
Media workers for web-portal zeroparty.in, Madhukar Dubey and Avinash Palliwar, are arrested by police and accused of reporting “misleading and baseless” information about local political leaders.

November 15, 2021: Kumarghat, Tripura (A) (F)
Journalists Samriddhi Sakunia and Swarna Jha, of HW News Network, are arrested for alleged criminal conspiracy following a complaint by Kanchan Das, a member of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (World Hindu Council).

January 30, 2022: Jammu & Kashmir (A)
Senior journalist Majid Hyderi is summoned for questioning by Jammu and Kashmir police for sharing a social media post stating the innocence of a 17-year-old who authorities claimed was a “hybrid militant”.

January 30, 2022: Jammu & Kashmir (A)
Journalist Fahad Shah is summoned for questioning by Jammu and Kashmir police for sharing social media post for sharing a social media post stating the innocence of a 17-year-old who authorities claimed was a “hybrid militant”.

January 5, 2022: Srinagar, Jammu & Kashmir(A)
Journalist Sajad Gul, 26, is arrested by security forces a day after he posted a protest video by the family of a Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) militant killed on January 3 in a security operation in Srinagar

February 4, 2022: Pulwama, Jammu & Kashmir (A)
Journalist Fahad Shah, of The Kashmir Wallah, is arrested by Pulwama police under various laws including Kashmir’s Public Safety Act, sedition and the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act.

March 15, 2022: Etmadulla, Uttar Pradesh (B)
Gaurav Bansal, an Agra-based journalist, is arrested by Etmadulla police for reporting on alleged electoral malpractice during the recent Uttar Pradesh elections. He is released after six days in custody.

March 30, 2022: Ballia, Uttar Pradesh (A)
Ajit Ojha and Digvijay Singh, with Hindi daily Amar Ujala, and Manoj Gupta of Rashtriya Sahara, are arrested by Uttar Pradesh Police after breaking news about a school exam question leak.

April 10, 2022: Kashmir (A)
Aasif Sultan, of Kashmir Narrator, is granted bail on April 5 after spending almost four years in prison under India’s UAPA and is subsequently rearrested and booked under Jammu and Kashmir’s Public Safety Act (PSA). He remains in Jammu’s Kot Bhalwal jail.

June 29, 2021: Uttar Pradesh (C)
Journalist Pateshwari Singh, of Bharat Kanak and Jana Sandesh Times, is assaulted by six unidentified assailants after publishing a critical report about a local BJP member and his associate.

August 17, 2021: Srinagar, Jammu & Kashmir
Jammu and Kashmir police chase a group of journalists and attack them with batons as they cover the Muharram procession in Srinagar.

September 11, 2021: Ranchi
Unknown assailants attack senior journalist and camera person Baijnath Mahato.

April 6, 2022: Nilagiri, Balasore, Odisha (C)
Loknath Dalei, of Kanak TV, is assaulted and mistreated by police officers from Nilagiri police station allegedly for prior reporting on the district’s alleged corruption.

June 13, 2021: Katra, Uttar Pradesh (C)
Journalist Sulabh Srivastava, of ABP News, dies in mysterious circumstances after his motorcycle slips and overturns on a road in the Katra area. The journalist sustains severe head injuries. Srivastava death comes after a request he made to the Uttar Pradesh police asking for protection following a report he published exposing local liquor mafias.

August 8, 2021: Nandyala, Andhra Pradesh
Chennakeshavalu, a journalist for news channel EV5, is stabbed with a screwdriver during an attack by a police constable. The journalist earlier published stories regarding the police constable’s alleged involvement in illegal tobacco sales and gambling.

October 4, 2021: Lakhimpur, Uttar Pradesh (C)
Journalist Raman Kashyap, of Sadhna Prime News, is found dead after covering a farmers’ protest in Lakhimpur Kheri where local farmers and political supporters collided. Kashyap was among eight others allegedly killed in the demonstration involving hundreds of farmers – four were farmers, and four were members of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

February 5, 2022: Kalahandi, Odisha (C)
Journalist Rohit Biswal, of Dharitri, is killed by an improvised explosive device (IED) allegedly planted by Maoist insurgents. The IED was placed to injure police personnel, however, it detonated while Biswal was taking photographs of posters put up by Maoists, asking Odisha residents to boycott rural elections.

October 5, 2021: Budgam, Jammu & Kashmir (C)
The Budgam District Information Officer (DIO), Tajamul Yousuf, restricts the numbers of members of the media from entering union minister Anurag Thakur’s program and events citing maintenance of discipline as justification.

September 8, 2021: Agartala, Tripura (D)
Television channels PB 24 News and Duranta TV and daily newspapers, Pratibadi Kalam, Kalmer Shakti and Daily Deshar Katha are vandalised during a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) rally.

January 17, 2022: Srinagar, Jammu & Kashmir (H)
Kashmir Press Club is forcibly shutdown following a raid by supporters of the ruling BJP party. The regional administration declares the club “ceased to exist” as it failed to register itself under the Societies Registration Act and advises its premises will be handed back to the government.

June 9, 2021: Panchkanya, Nuwakot District, Bagmati (C)
Journalists from Palika Khabar and Dainiki are threatened by the chairperson of the Panchakanya rural municipality, Tej Bahadur Tamang, for publishing reports regarding the possible embezzlement of social security allowances distributed in the municipality.

July 17, 2021: Kathmandu
Gajendra Budhathoki, the editor-in-chief of Lumbini Sanchar, receives a death threat from management officers from Bottlers Nepal, Coca-Cola’s Nepal-based bottling plant, after he reports on the company’s shares.

August 23, 2021: Rautahat, Madhesh (C)
Police officers Udaya Yadav and constable Manoj Shah, allegedly frame journalist Mohammad Mojubullah in a drug smuggling case by purposefully hiding nitravet, a contraband drug, on his motorbike.

August 23, 2021: Karnali (C)
Journalists Nagendra Upadhyaya, of Nagarik Daily, and Bishnu Neupane, of Annapurna Post, receive death threats from the personal secretary and press advisor of the Karnali Province Agricultural Minister, Kurma Raj Shahi, after the journalists report a story accusing the minister of rape.

September 27, 2021: Kalikot (C)
Prem Raj Simkhada, a Gorkhapatra correspondent, receives death threats.

January 1, 2022: Surkhet (C)
Pankha Bahadur Shahi, a reporter for Ratopati, receives several death threats after publishing a report on the reinstatement of a statue of the late king Birendra in Birendranagar.

January 3, 2022: Jhapa (C)
Durga Prasain, the owner of B and C Medical College, issues a public threat against journalists for publishing critical reports about his college.

March 2, 2022: Ahmedabad, Gujarat

Acting Administrative Office of Central United Hospital, Bhupendra Basnet, threatens to arrest Nepalese journalist Upendra Khadka, of Ukeraa, under the Electronic Transaction Act.

May 25, 2021: Ram Shah Path, Kathmandu (A)
Rajan Kuikel, chief editor of Imagekhabar, and Narayan Amrit, editor-in-chief of Nepal Samaya, are summoned by the Supreme Court and interrogated for publishing “fake and misleading” news about Nepal’s prime minister.

June 17, 2021: Swayambhu, Kathmandu (A)
Paras Bikram Shahi, the editor of Dainiki and a member of the Nepal Sports Journalists Forum, is harassed and briefly detained by Nepal Police Sub-Inspector, Pratibha Singh, for allegedly failing to issue his identity card at the Department of Information.

February 15, 2022: Kathmandu (A)
Umakanta Pandey, of Ujyaalo Radio Network is arrested by UAE police officials under cybercrime charges following a statement he published on Facebook accusing the Nepali embassy in the UAE of wrongdoing regarding Visit Visas in the UAE. He is sentenced to three months in prison.

February 22, 2022: Kathmandu (A)
Officials from the Nepal Police Cyber Bureau in Kathmandu summon blogger Umesh Shrestha. Upon his arrival at the station the journalist is harassed by the deputy superintendent of police (DSP), Pradin Tamrakar, and accused of spreading misinformation regarding the MCC fund, a United States subsidised fund aimed at improving infrastructure in Nepal.

September 30, 2021: Kathmandu (A)
Pradip Bhandari, of Dainik Nepal YouTube Channel; Shishir Adhikari, of Harek Palko Khabar YouTube Channel; Pinkala Karki, of Saraichuli Media YouTube Channel; and Rodhan Tamang, of Modern Online TV are arrested by the Cyber Bureau of Nepal Police under Nepal’s Electronic Transaction Act.for allegedly broadcasting news accusing a woman’s involvement in a fraud case

October 2, 2021: Kathmandu (J)
Management of the state-owned Gorkhapatra Daily fires 29 journalists from. Among those fired are district-based correspondents working under contract.

December 21, 2021: Kathmandu (C) (H)
The Federal Parliament Secretariat obstructs journalists from covering parliamentary committees. Police on duty at the Parliament Secretariat prohibit journalists from covering the meeting citing orders from ‘higher up’.

May 4, 2021: Putha Uttarganga, Rukum East, Lumbini (C)
Jitendra Budhathoki, journalist for Radio East Rukum, and Bikram Pariyar, of Lumbini Voice Online, are assaulted by the chairperson of the Putha Uttarganga Rural Municipality, Sur Bahadur Roka. The journalists are attacked while investigating a financial dispute concerning an infrastructure project.

May 18, 2021: Kapilvastu, Lumbini (C)
Gopal Bhandari of Avenues Television is harassed by Chief District Officer (CDO) of the Kapilvastu district, Chakrapani Pandey, while covering a civil society group’s event. The CDO also bars the journalist from taking photographs of the event.

May 27, 2021: Sunsari District (C)

Ratna Prasad Acharya, of Annapurna Post, is threatened by several Nepali Congress-aligned groups, including the Nepal Students Union and Nepal Dalit Union, for publishing a report on government land in Sunsari.

May 27, 2021: Mahottari, Madhesh (C)
FNJ Mahottari District chapter member and Ap1 Television reporter Nabin Chaudary is harassed by Sanjib Kumar Raya while taking photographs of a bridge construction. Raya is a member of the local constrictor of the bridge.

June 2, 2021: Kaski (C)
Arjun Giri, a journalist for Tandav News, is threatened with “dire consequences” by an unidentified individual after publishing a news report investigating the murder of 18-year-old Nubhiv Upreti.

July 3, 2021: Min Bhawan, Kathmandu
Photojournalist Nimesh Jung Rai of Nepal Live is physically assaulted with a baton by police personnel while covering protests organised by a student union affiliated with the Five-Party Alliance. The journalist sustained injuries to his knee.

July 5, 2021: Dailekh, Karnali
Yaghya Raj Thapa is harassed by police while reporting during Nepal’s Covid-19 lockdown.

July 6, 2021: Pingalasthan, Kathmandu
Saroj Poudel, Suresh Rajak and Sheetal Rijal, journalists for Avenues Television, and Deepak Aryal and Sundar Bahadur Gurung, of Prime Television, are attacked while doing a story on Paragon Public School and that it was allegedly forcing students to pay for tuition despite the school being closed.

June 16, 2021: Kathmandu
Dhiraj Basnet and Shikha Shrestha, of News24, are abused by social activist Gyanendra Shahi after publishing a report about Shahi’s misbehaviour with local community members.

July 22, 2021: Satdobato, Lalitpur
Sports journalists Bibhu Shrestha and Bibha Thapa are harassed by Abdullah Al Mutairi, the head coach of the Nepali National Football Team, after they question him about smoking during the orientation of the team outside Satdobato Football Stadium.

July 28, 2021: Kathmandu (J)
Journalists with Nagarik Daily, a sister publication of Nepal Republic Media Limited, are denied salary for three years. District correspondents and stringers stage sit-in protests at the publication’s office, demanding the issue of their long-pending salary.

September 5, 2021: Kathmandu
Sanjiv Regmi, a local TV presenter, is targeted by online attacks after publishing a report investigating alleged fraudulent behaviour by local MP Sagar Thapa.

September 11, 2021: Kathmandu
Nepali police harass journalists Shital Rijal and Suresh Rajak, of Avenues Television outside the Hotel Marriot in Kathmandu as the journalists attempt to report on a meeting being held by the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) Vice President, Fatema Sumar, with Nepal’s top political leadership.

September 12, 2021: Kaski (C)
Ranjan Adhikari, the founder and editor at Gandak News, is physically assaulted by victims of a fraud case while on a reporting assignment at the District Police Office. The attackers thrashed him and seized his mobile for recording their protest.

September 26, 2021: Kathmandu
Yaghya Dhakal, editor of Nepali Janata Online is harassed by staff members of Kathmandu Upatyaka Khanepani Limited (KUKL) while news reporting.

September 27, 2021: Kalikot (C)
Lalit Bista, of Radio New Karnali FM, is beaten inside the station’s office by the vice-chairperson of Shubhakalika Rural Municipality, Pamphakumari Shahi, for his news reporting.

November 15, 2021: Kathmandu
The Supreme Court administration obstructs journalists from covering news about protest activities against Chief Justice Cholendra SJB Rana in the apex court premises.

November 23, 2021: Budhanilkantha, Kathmandu
Police intimidate the former vice chairman of the Federation of Nepali Journalists (FNJ), Khil Bahadur Bhandari, at his home in Budhanilkantha Municipality. A team of five plain-clothed police went to the house to inquire about tenants who previously lived there.

November 30, 2021: Kathmandu
Journalists Subash Darnal and Raman Ban are assaulted by party members reporting as they report on the presidential election for the district committee of the Nepali congress. The assault resulted in the physical damage of their reporting equipment, including a microphone and recorder.

January 5, 2022: Rautahat (C)
Prem Chandra Jha, the president of Federation of Nepali Journaliprests (FNJ), is verbally abused by the administrative officer of the District Administration Office, while in the process of registering a magazine.

January 2022: Kathmandu

Nepali journalists, Sudeep Puri, of Galaxy Television, and Jagatdal Janala BK, of Ukeraa, are harassed by political leaders for publishing a report criticising the tourism and environment minister of Karnali province, Chhiring Damdul Lama.

December 14, 2021: Bagmati (C) (H)
The Office of Province Chief of Bagmati Province bars private media houses from covering the oath taking ceremony of newly appointed ministers. Only journalists from state-owned media are allowed to cover the event.

September 19, 2021: Malé
Channel 13 journalist Mohamed Samah and camera operator Mohamed Shaheem are beaten with riot shields by police officers as they cover an opposition protest. Samah receives treatment for a head injury and Shaheem also requires treatment for injuries. The police also obstruct other journalists at the scene and ignore press accreditation passes.

October 22, 2021: Online (F) (I)
Organized trolls launch an online attack against BBC journalist Asma Shirazi, accusing her of insulting Prime Minister Imran Khan’s wife, Bushra Bibi, in an article.

May 1, 2021: Bannu, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (A) (B) (C)
Freelance journalist Hidayat Ullah is held in illegal detention by the Bannu police for exposing the alleged involvement of the district administration in a sugar scam. He is released after a few hours.

June 1, 2021: Umerkot, Sindh (C)
Six journalists, Ali Murad, Awi Goswani, Allah Juriyu, Dilbar Hussain, Mushtaq Kumbhar and Niaz Rajpar, are issued arrest warrants by an anti-terrorism court for publishing allegedly unsubstantiated allegations of malpractices in the local health department.

June 22, 2021: Islamabad (A)
The Federal Investigation Agency’s Cyber Crime Reporting Centre summon journalist Muhammad Bilal Ghauri for alleged defamatory remarks made through his YouTube channel. 

July 2, 2021: Islamabad
Journalist Nadeem Malik is issued a notice by the Federal Investigative Agency’s (FIA) Counter-Terrorism wing following comment made on live television where he allegedly accused a former judge Arshad Malik of blackmail.

July 6, 2021: Sadiqabad, Punjab (A)
Ahmed Nawaz, reporter for Bol News TV, is taken into custody and tortured by Sadiqabad police for reporting about alleged police high-handedness.

July 20, 2021: Shikarpur, Sindh (A) (B)
Freelance journalist Sultan Rind is arrested by the staff of Sindh Minister Imtiaz Sheikh for running a story highlighting the use of substantial material for construction in a local development project. He is released after a few hours.

August 7, 2021: Karachi, Sindh (A)
Ashfaqur Rehman, of YouTube channel Googly News TV and Mehmood Aslam, of Tellings with Imran Shafqat, are arrested by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) for alleged defamation of government authorities online.

August 7, 2021: Lahore, Punjab (A)
Journalists Amir Mir and Imran Shafqat are booked under the Cybercrime Act by Pakistan’s Federal Investigative Agency (FIA) for allegedly ‘criticising national security agencies and the judiciary’ and for ‘damaging public confidence’.

September 14, 2021: Swat, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (B) (C)
Kamran Bangash, a freelance journalist, is booked in two different cases, including an anti-terrorism charge, after he highlighted cases of tourists robbed while on vacation near Kalam.

September 23, 2021: Karachi, Sindh (A)
Waris Raza, a columnist for Jang newspaper, is arrested and detained for several hours during a raid of his home by officials of the paramilitary force rangers. He is released after protests by the journalist community.

January 7, 2022: Islamabad (G)
Pakistan’s High Court indicts The News International owner, Mir Shakil-ur-Rahman, and two of staff, Aamir Ghauri and Ansar Abbasi, for accusing Pakistan’s former Chief Justice, Saqib Nisar, of corruption.

January 27, 2022: Karachi, Sindh (C)
Sanjay Sadhwani, of Samaa TV, is served an arrest warrant for alleged defamation filed by ruling party Sindh minister Saeed Ghani.

February 16, 2022: Islamabad (A)
Journalist Moshin Jamil Baig is arrested by Islamabad police after an FIA raid on his house following a corruption complaint by a federal minister.

February 15, 2022: Karachi, Sindh (A)
Iqrar-ul-Hassan, of ARY TV, is illegally detained for several hours at the office of Pakistan’s Intelligence Bureau (IB) and severely tortured by five officials of the IB.

March 18, 2022: Khanewal (C)
Local Police from Tibba Sultan Pur register a First Information Report (FIR) against senior journalist Akram Khand.

March 30, 2022: Sakhar, Sindh (C)
Khairpur CIA police arrest KTN Gambat reporter Zahid Jamro in an allegedly fake case First Information Report (FIR) case and torture him. Jamro is allegedly targeted for reporting on illegal hunting collusion between Middle Eastern hunters and police.

May 15, 2021: Karachi, Sindh
Rehan Subhan, cameraperson for a local TV channel, is assaulted by four policemen as he filmed market activity in Karachi, despite telling officers he was a media worker. The policemen were later suspended.   

May 25, 2022: Islamabad
Aaj Television’s Asad Ali Toor is attacked by three gunmen, allegedly from the Pakistan Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency, during a home invasion. Toor’s electronic devices, including his mobile phone, are taken.

May 31, 2022: Islamabad
Aaj Television’s Ali Toor is summoned again by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) on accusations of defaming a government institution thorough a social media post.

August 13, 2021: Sanghar, Sindh
Journalist Ghulam Qadir Shar, of Time News and Daily Panhanji Akhbar, is attacked by supporters of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP). He is severely beaten and receives emergency medical treatment at Civil Hospital Hyderabad for brain damage.

October 22, 2021: Islamabad
Nafees Arayeen, cameraperson for 24News TV, is attacked by sub-inspector Mazhar Sial of the Islamabad Police while covering police action against shopkeepers and hotel labourers.

November 24, 2021: Lahore, Punjab (F)
Nawa-I-Waqt journalist Ambreen Fatima and her family are attacked by unknown assailants. During the attack, the aggressors reportedly break the car’s front windshield with an iron bar and hurl death threats at the journalist and her family before fleeing.

January 25, 2022: Multan, Punjab
Two unidentified assailants open fire on Rohi TV journalist Malik Amjad and his brother as they travel home. Amjad alerts the police and registers an attempted murder case.

December 2, 2021: Hangu, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Gunmen open fire and attack the residence of journalist Farooq Paracha.

December 9, 2021: Karachi, Sindh
Faysal Majeeb, a photojournalist for Dawn magazine, is beaten up and detained by rangers in Karachi while covering a Muttahida Quami Movement (MQM) event. Majeeb is detained for over an hour and subjected to a “severe thrashing” by the rangers.

March 18, 2022: Sargodha, Punjab
Unidentified persons open fire on GEO News cameraman Zaheer Khan’s house, leaving him and his two brothers injured.

March 27, 2022: Kallur kot, Punjab (C)
Zahid Sharif Rana, from the Daily Ausaf, is assaulted by ten members of Tehreek-e-Insaaf, Pakistan’s ruling party, who beat him with ropes and batons and shoved him to the ground.

August 10, 2021: Vanike Tarar, Hafizabad District (C)
Journalist Kashif Hussain, of Daily Khabrain and Daily Qomi Akhbar, is killed by unknown assailants. The journalist is found dead in his home by his family, with his throat cut by a sharp instrument.

October 10, 2021: Hub, Balochistan
Shahid Zehri, a reporter for Metro 1 News, is killed in car bomb explosion. CCTV footage confirms the bomb was attached to the journalist’s car. The Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) claim responsibility for the attack

November 3, 2021: Malir District, Sindh (C)
Blogger Nazim Jokhio’s body is found at a farmhouse belonging to a Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) lawmaker. Jokhio previously published a video on social media of one of the lawmaker’s foreign guests illegally hunting an endangered bird.

November 8, 2021: Sakhakot, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (C)
Social media activist Muhammad Zada Agra is shot dead by unidentified gunmen after running a social media campaign against drug cartels and other criminals in the region.

January 24, 2022: Lahore, Sindh
Journalist Hasnain Shah, a reporter for Capital TV, is gunned down by unidentified armed robbers a daytime attack.

September 6, 2021: National
Tehrik Taliban Pakistan issues a written statement to national media threatening journalists of serious consequences if they continue to call the banned group a ‘terrorist outfit’.

September 14, 2021: Islamabad
Indus News announces its temporary closure after three years in operation citing “unavoidable legal and technical issues”.

November 16, 2021: Islamabad
Pakistan’s Federal Planning Minister, Asad Umar, accuses journalists of colluding with the opposition against the government and threatens to use force against the media.

May 30, 2021: Islamabad
Hamid Mir, of Capital Talk, is taken off air after defending journalist Asad Toor, and blaming Pakistan’s security establishment for attacking Toor’s house days earlier.

October 27, 2021: (H)
The Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority enforces a ban on media coverage of Tehrik Labaik Pakistan.

November 27, 2021: (H)
The Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority issues a show-cause notice to Channel 24 for allegedly airing “hate speech, inciting violence and being offensive to commonly accepted standards of decency.”

February 11, 2022: (H)
Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) issues a show-case notice to News One for allegedly broadcasting “derogatory and demeaning remarks” about Federal Minister for Communications, Murad Saeed.

February 12, 2022: (H)
News One TV is taken off air by cable networks and issued a show-cause notice by the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) for airing ‘derogatory remarks’ about a federal minister.

September 14, 2021: Batticaloa, Eastern Province (A)
Tamil journalist Punniyamoorthy Sasikaran is interrogated by Sri Lanka’s Special Crime Prevention Unit. The justification for his examination is not disclosed.

December 4, 2021: Colombo
Lasantha Ruhunage, editor for Anidda newspaper, receives death threats from an unidentified number.

March 17, 2022: Colombo (B) (F)
Parami Nilepthi Ranasinghe, a freelance journalist working for Rupavahni television, is told her services are no longer required under “instructions from management” after she publishes social media posts criticising the Sri Lankan president and government.

March 16, 2022: Colombo
Journalist Rahul Samantha Hettiarachchi is pressured by a former member of parliament, Duminda Silva, to refrain from recording footage of the Ambalantota sand smuggling incident.

March 1, 2022: Colombo
Sachithra Mahendra, of Ceylon Daily News, is interdicted. According to a letter received from the management, the closest reason for interdiction is not agreeing with the Director Editorial during a meeting with them.

March 31, 2022: Mirihana, Nugegoda, Colombo
Officers from Sri Lanka’s Special Task Force (STF) assault several journalists and detain at least six during a mass public protest outside President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s residence in Mirihana.

November 28, 2021: Mullaitivu, Northern Province (C)
Journalist Vishwalingam Vishwachandran is attacked by members of the 59th division of the Sri Lankan army for reporting on a Tamil memorial service. The soldiers attack the journalist using a palm stick wrapped with barbed wire and seize his mobile phone.

February 14, 2022: Piliyandala, Colombo
Journalist Chamuditha Samarawickrema is attacked by armed gunmen after assailants stormed the journalist’s residence at 2am and began throwing stones and faeces at his house.

March 30/31, 2022: Janadhipathi Mawatha, Colombo
Eleven journalists are assaulted by police and security officers while reporting on a protest outside President Gotabaya Rajapakshe’s residence. Some are critically injured and their cameras and other equipment damaged.