The Court of Judicial Magistrate First Class in Srinagar acquitted a Kashmiri journalist from all the charges, declaring him innocent.
In October 2021, a photojournalist, Ubaid Mukhtar from Srinagar was attacked by the security guard of the city’s Hazratbal area on a Sunday afternoon.
Mukhtar told Kashmiriyat he was forced to leave the premises while he was doing an autumn photo shoot. “They asked me to leave the campus as it was not allowed to shoot inside the campus premises, i turned off my camera and left the spot,” he said.
He added that as he was leaving the place, a security guard yelled at him, saying that all journalists in Kashmir were “propagandists”. Mukhtaralleged, “The guard told me, ‘You are all thieves; we know you.’”
On 25 July 2024, Tabasum, a Judicial Magistrate 1st Class, acquitted Mukhtar in case FIR No. 141/2021 from P/S Nigeen, Srinagar. The case, involving charges under Sections 451 (House-trespass to commit an offense punishable with imprisonment) and 506 (Criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), was about an incident that happened on 1 November 2021, at Kashmir University.
The prosecution, reportedly, alleged the accused broke into the university by jumping over a wall, took photos of the area despite a ban, and got into a physical fight with security personnel The security staff said the accused threatened them before running away. An FIR was filed, and the investigation included creating a site plan, an injury memo, and recording witness statements.
In court, the only witness, Mirza Khan from Bandipora, said the accused caused a disturbance at the university. However, his testimony lacked support from other additional witnesses or corroborative evidence. During cross-examination, Khan admitted he didn’t recall key details like the timing of the police arrival or the identities of other individuals present there.
In delivering the judgment, Tabasum said, “The prosecution has failed to substantiate the charges against the accused beyond a reasonable doubt. The evidence presented, which includes the testimony of a single witness, is insufficient to establish the accused’s guilt.”
The judge added that “the principles of criminal jurisprudence require that the burden of proof lies with the prosecution, and in this case, that burden has not been met.”
Tabasum stated that the prosecution’s case lacked adequate support and thus decided to dismiss the charge sheet. The accused was acquitted of all charges, and the bail bonds were discharged.
