EGI flags press freedom concerns in annual report

New Delhi, Dec 9: The Editors Guild of India (EGi) has released its 2024–25 report outlining a year of expanded public engagement, legal interventions, and advocacy on press freedom.

Through a series of high-profile events, including conclaves in Delhi, Odisha and Bengaluru, as well as the Rajendra Mathur and Prem Bhatia memorial lectures, the Guild convened journalists, legal experts and academics to debate challenges facing the media, from shrinking editorial independence to new legal and technological threats. The Guild also assumed responsibility for the activities and corpus of the Prem Bhatia Memorial Trust, receiving Rs 82 lakh for its long-term stewardship.

Alongside its outreach efforts, the Guild detailed active legal battles on issues such as the Fact-Check Unit under the IT Rules, exclusion from the 15th Press Council term, the reintroduction of sedition under the new criminal code, and the search-and-seizure of journalists’ devices. It also raised concerns over the Digital Personal Data Protection Act and deposed before a parliamentary committee examining “fake news” regulation. Over the year, EGi issued 23 statements protesting police action, takedowns, and legal complaints against journalists, while continuing to press the government for transparency, safeguards, and stronger protections for independent reporting.