'The Caravan' ordered to take down report on alleged torture, murder by Indian Army

The Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting on Tuesday ordered The Caravan magazine to take down an article on the alleged torture and murder of civilians by the Indian Army in Jammu and Kashmir.

Announcing the receipt of the government order in a now-deleted post on X, The Caravan said it would challenge the order in court.

Screenshot of the post by The Caravan.

While the contents of the order are confidential, The Hindu reported that the IT Ministry demanded the taking down of an article titled, 'Screams from the Army Post: The Indian Army’s torture and murder of civilians in a restive Jammu', written by journalist Jatinder Kaur Tur.

The article reportedly included interviews with the family of a registered Intelligence Bureau (IB) informer in the region, who was picked up for questioning after the December 22, 2023, terrorist attack in Poonch that killed four Army personnel, and who died shortly thereafter.

The article also alleged that ‘blood money’ was paid by senior military officials to the family of the informer after his body was returned to them.

Tur's article was published as a part of a series of articles—'The Military under Modi'—on the alleged politicisation of the Indian Army under the current regime.

Screenshot showing the now taken down URL of the story.

While it remains to be seen what transpires in the court tussle that is to follow, it should be noted that The Caravan is no stranger to lawsuits. Back in 2011, the magazine faced legal action from Arindam Chaudhuri, the founder of the now-defunct Indian Institute of Planning and Management (IIPM), but prevailed in court. Later, in 2014, Swami Aseemanand, who was chargesheeted for masterminding the 2007 Samjhauta Express train bombing, also threatened to sue the magazine over an interview wherein he openly spoke of his role, following which The Caravan released interviews and transcripts related to the same.