Fahad Shah set to be released, but Kashmir Walla is a magazine without an address

Fahad Shah, 36, founder and editor of the Srinagar-based news magazine and portal The Kashmir Walla, is likely to be released this week, days after the Jammu & Kashmir High Court came down heavily on the administration for invoking various sections of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) against him and granted him bail.

Fahad Shah, 36, founder and editor of the Srinagar-based news magazine and portal The Kashmir Walla, is likely to be released this week, days after the Jammu & Kashmir High Court came down heavily on the administration for invoking various sections of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) against him and granted him bail.

However, the news magazine Mr. Shah founded in 2009 has no physical or virtual address anymore. According to a statement issued by the magazine, its portal and social media handles were shut down, and its staff members were forced to evict their office in August this year.

“Our Facebook page – with nearly half a million followers – had been removed. As had our Twitter account, ‘in response to a legal demand’. In tandem with this move, we have also been served an eviction notice by the landlord of our office in Srinagar and are in the process of evicting the office,” the statement read.

A former staff member of the magazine, where the editorial staff has been pruned from 13 members to six over the past year, said, “We were not served any notice banning The Kashmir Walla. But the actions were hints enough. Since August, we have not published a single word. It was ensured that The Kashmir Walla does not exist,” he added.

“This opaque censorship is gut-wrenching,” the portal said in its statement in August. “There isn’t a lot left for us to say. Since 2011, The Kashmir Walla has strived to remain an independent, credible, and courageous voice of the region in the face of unimaginable pressure from the authorities,” it added.

Meanwhile, a close associate of Mr. Shah, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said, “His family is in Jammu to complete the necessary legal formalities. We are hopeful of his release this week.”

Since his arrest on February 4, 2022, for a report on an encounter in Pulwama, Mr. Shah has been arrested in four other cases, mostly related to the magazine’s reportage. He has been granted bail in a total of four cases by separate courts.