J&K court orders FIR against TV channels for falsely branding slain teacher as LeT terrorist

In a strongly worded order, a local court in Poonch on June 28 directed police to file an FIR against television news channels that aired the photo of a local religious teacher, falsely labeling him as a Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorist killed during India’s Operation Sindoor in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

The man in question, Qari Mohammad Iqbal of Qari Mohalla, was in fact a civilian religious teacher who lost his life in cross-border shelling by Pakistani forces in Poonch on May 7. His name and photograph were allegedly used by the channels in their coverage of the Indian Air Force's retaliatory strikes following the deadly Pahalgam terror attack on April 22 that killed 26 people.

While the channels later issued an apology and withdrew the erroneous broadcast, the court said the damage had already been done. “An apology may have mitigating value at the stage of sentencing, but does not preclude the statutory duty of police to register an FIR once a cognizable offence is disclosed,” observed Sub Judge and Special Mobile Magistrate Sjafeeq Ahmed.

The court noted that the channels’ conduct amounted to public mischief and defamation under Sections 353(2), 356, and 196(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, as well as Section 66 of the Information Technology Act. It ordered the Station House Officer of Poonch Police Station to register the FIR immediately.

Criticizing the unverified broadcast during a period of heightened India-Pakistan tensions, the judge emphasized, “Branding a deceased civilian as a Pakistani terrorist, particularly without any verification, cannot be dismissed as a mere journalistic lapse… It is an act capable of disturbing social harmony, defaming the deceased, and outraging the sentiments of the community.”

The petition seeking action was filed by advocate Sheikh Mohammad Saleem, who alleged that the news channels not only mislabeled Iqbal as a terrorist but also falsely linked him to the 2019 Pulwama terror attack. The court dismissed the argument that no family member had filed a complaint, stating that any concerned citizen has the right to initiate legal proceedings upon learning of a cognizable offence.

The judge also rejected claims that jurisdiction lay solely in Delhi, where the broadcast originated. “When an act and its consequences occur in different places, jurisdiction arises in either location,” the court clarified, pointing out that the defamation and emotional trauma took place in Poonch, where Iqbal lived, served, and died.

Earlier, the bereaved family had served legal notices to the concerned channels through advocate Sheikh Shakeel Ahmed, seeking Rs 5 crore in damages from each.

The court's order is being seen as a landmark assertion of accountability for media houses, particularly in conflict zones where unverified reporting can inflame tensions and destroy reputations.