Barwe, the founder of the Samarth Bharat Pariwar YouTube-based news channel, was brutally beaten July 4 while reporting on claims of  illegal construction activity on disputed land in the Manchar region of Maharashtra’s Pune district, according to several news reports. A widely circulated video of the attack, reviewed by CPJ, shows a man striking Barwe with a wooden rod before the journalist  loses consciousness. She was hospitalized for three days with serious head and spinal injuries, and is currently recovering at home.

Police arrested five men over two days in connection with the attack who were granted bail and released,  Indian Express reported. The suspect wielding the stick has yet to be taken into custody.

“It is unacceptable that journalist Sneha Barwe’s attackers still walk free two weeks after her violent assault. This sends a troubling message that attacking the press will be met with impunity,” said Kunāl Majumder, CPJ’s India representative. “Maharashtra authorities must act decisively to ensure accountability and send a clear signal that violence against journalists will not be tolerated.”

The arrested suspects were accused of violating six sections of the Indian Penal Code, including provisions related to voluntarily causing hurt and causing grievous hurt by dangerous weapons, according to Indian media watchdog Free Speech Collective. Three other people were also hurt in the attack with Barwe, who had been targeted on at least two previous occasions in connection with her reporting on local governance issues.

Srikant Kankal, the police officer supervising Barwe’s case, did not respond to CPJ’s texted request for an update on finding the journalist’s main attacker.

In February 2023, journalist Sashikant Warishe was murdered for reporting on a land dispute in Maharashtra.

This content originally appeared on Committee to Protect Journalists and was authored by Committee to Protect Journalists.

“Since Prime Minister Modi came to power in 2014, there has been an increasing crackdown on India’s media,” said CPJ President Jodie Ginsberg. “Journalists critical of the government and the BJP party have been jailed, harassed, and surveilled in retaliation for their work. India is the world’s largest democracy, and it needs to live up to that by ensuring a free and independent media–and we expect the United States to make this a core element of discussions.”

On Wednesday, June 14, CPJ convened an online panel, “India’s Press Freedom Crisis,” with opening remarks and moderation by Ginsberg alongside panelists Geeta Seshu, founding editor of the Free Speech Collective watchdog group; Anuradha Bhasin, executive editor of the Kashmir Times newspaper; and Shahina K.K., senior editor for Outlook magazine.

The panelists discussed the deterioration of press freedom over the last decade, with Seshu detailing the rise in censorship and “vicious” attacks on the media, while Shahina shared her ongoing battle to fight terrorism charges filed nearly 13 years ago by the Karnataka state government, then led by Modi’s BJP party, in retaliation for her investigative reporting.

Bhasin spoke about the “effective silence” that Kashmiri journalists have dealt with since the Modi government unilaterally revoked Jammu and Kashmir’s special autonomy status in 2019, with multiple cases of reporters being detained and interrogated.

CPJ calls on the U.S. government to urge India to act on the following press freedom violations:

• The ongoing detention of six journalists–Aasif Sultan, Gautam Navlakha, Sajad Gul, Fahad Shah, Rupesh Kumar Singh, and Irfan Mehraj–in retaliation for their work. All have been targeted under draconian security laws. Shah faces trial on spurious terrorism charges in relation to a 2011 article published by his online magazine The Kashmir Walla. The other five journalists remain in pretrial detention.

• The harassment of the domestic and foreign media, including routine raids and retaliatory income tax investigations launched into critical news outlets. In February, income tax authorities raided the BBC’s offices in Delhi and Mumbai after the government censored a critical documentary on Modi by the broadcaster. Foreign correspondents say they have faced increasing visa uncertainties, restricted access to several areas of the country, including Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir, and even threats of deportation in retaliation for critical reporting in recent years.

• The media crackdown in Kashmir, including the use of preventative detention, terrorism and criminal cases, travel bans, raids, and summons for questioning in retaliation for journalists’ work. In 2020, the government enacted a stringent media policy outlining powers for authorities to accredit the media, distribute government advertisements, and determine what constitutes “fake news.”

• Ongoing impunity in cases of killed journalists. At least 62 journalists have been killed in India in connection with their work since 1992. India ranked 11th on CPJ’s 2022 impunity index, with unsolved cases of at least 20 journalists killed in retaliation for their work from September 1, 2012, to August 31, 2022.

• Digital media restrictions, including using the IT Rules, 2021, to censor critical journalism, including the BBC documentary on Modi. India led the world in internet shutdowns for the fifth year in 2022, impeding press freedom and the ability of journalists to work freely.

This content originally appeared on Committee to Protect Journalists and was authored by Committee to Protect Journalists.