Following the withholding of Maktoob Media’s X handle in India, journalists across the country strongly condemned the act, calling it a clear violation of press freedom.
The Indian government’s order on Thursday to block over 8,000 accounts on X (formerly Twitter) included the withholding of accounts for independent outlets like Maktoob Media, The Kashmiriyat, and Free Press Kashmir in India.
The move has been widely condemned as an “assault on press freedom” and a tactic to silence critical voices, while mainstream media, accused of indulging in “warmongering jingoism” and spreading fake news, continues to operate without consequence.
Journalist Anusha Ravi Sood, took to X, stating, “TV channels that are peddling misinformation and whipping up hysteria without common sense are not even questioned,” while “the account of a media house like @MaktoobMedia, which was fact-checking misinformation from mainstream media just today, is withheld on @X.”
Prominent journalist Rana Ayyub, wrote, “Freedom of the press, anyone?” and expressed “solidarity with Maktoob Media.”
Calling the move “shambolic, frankly,” journalist Gaurav Nandan Tripathi noted that it is “helping no one, and a step back in the narrative war too.”
Journalist Ayush Tiwari noted that while the government has legal tools to check television media under the Cable TV Networks Act 1995, it “has not exercised any of it to restrain channels spiraling into hysteria”, while blocking “4PM, Maktoob and Kashmiriyat. tells you a lot.”
Journalist Aditya Menon pointed to a clear double standard, calling it “hypocrisy” that while Maktoob is blocked, “channels spreading lies face no action.”
Calling Maktoob “a platform that has never shied away from telling the truth no matter how uncomfortable or inconvenient it may be for those in power,” Journalist Meer Faisal called the block not just a legal move but “an attempt to silence voices that speak for the oppressed and unheard.”
“It’s deeply troubling, but sadly, not surprising in a time when truth is treated like a threat,” he said.
He further stated that, “Maktoob has always reported from the ground, from the cracks in our society where most media won’t even look. And now, when they’re being targeted for doing what journalism is meant to do, it’s our duty to stand with them.”
He urged people to “share their work, talk about them, and keep their voice alive. Because in the end, we are many, many more than them.”
Prapthi, a Bengaluru-based public policy expert, observed that while “credible news agencies have been blocked, there have been zero repercussions for war mongering news channels with viewership of millions. Makes absolutely no sense.”
Angshuman Choudhury called the act “sweeping, arbitrary and irrational,” arguing that Maktoob’s work has been “rational, measured, and human-centric”, which makes it a target in an environment where “jingoism is a precondition for journalism.”
Journalist Mekhala Saran, in defence of Maktoob Media’s freedom of expression, wrote, “Free speech is almost always the first casualty of hate. Every time someone is forcibly silenced, we have to stop for a second and ask ourselves what is it that free thinking adults are so afraid to see? More importantly, what is it that we are so afraid to tell each other? Freedom of expression cannot be sacrificed at the altar of nation-love, for any nationalism/patriotism that spouts from a structure of mistruths, secrets and conjecture, is as an imaginary and incomplete idea. To truly love a nation is not to turn a blind eye to its flaws, but to love it despite them. It is to allow everyone an equal say.”
Activist Asif Mujtaba called it a “blatant violation of Article 19(1)(a)”, which guarantees freedom of speech under the Indian Constitution.
Terming the action “outrageous”, journalist Zoya Rasul highlighted that “while a horde of right-wing accounts continue to peddle fake, hateful content relentlessly. In complete solidarity!”
Describing this an act as “not just censorship but its an attack on independent journalism, journalist Rushda Fathima Khan said “This should concern us all.”
Saumya Kalia urged people to “support independent media like Maktoob, The Kashmiriyat, and Alt News,” calling them “our only hope for truth and restraint.”
Human rights activist Sadaf Jafar, journalist Mahtab Nama, and lyricist Hussain Haidry also extended their solidarity with Maktoob.
