The Jammu and Kashmir police’s State Investigation Agency on Thursday claimed to have recovered AK47 rifles and other arms and ammunition from the office of Kashmir Times during a raid in Jammu even as the newspaper decried the accusations as “designed to intimidate, to delegitimise, and ultimately to silence”.

Launched in 1954 as a weekly by the late Ved Bhasin, Kashmir Times is one of the most well-known newspapers from the Valley.

Officials said that the SIA sleuths conducted a search of the newspaper's premises and computers after a case was registered against the publication and its promoters.

Ak-47 cartridges, pistol rounds and three grenade levers were recovered during the searches that began earlier in the day and are still underway, according to a PTI report.

The news agency quoted sources as saying that an FIR has been registered against the editor Anuradha Bhasin for allegedly spreading disaffection, glorifying secessionism and threatening sovereignty and territorial integrity of India and the Union Territory.

The editors, Anuradha Bhasin and Prabodh Jamwal, in a joint statement described the raid as an attempt to silence Kashmir Times.

“The reported raids in our office, the baseless accusations of activities “inimical to the state” and the coordinated crackdown on the Kashmir Times are yet another attempt to silence us,” said the statement published on the daily’s website on Thursday afternoon.

“Criticising the government is not the same as being inimical to the state. In fact, it is the very opposite. A robust, questioning press is essential to a healthy democracy. Our work of holding power to account, investigating corruption, amplifying marginalised voices strengthens our nation. It does not weaken it.”

The newspaper’s print edition was suspended in 2021-22 and it has since been published online.

Raids carried out in Srinagar and other parts of Kashmir early November onwards revealed a white-collar terror module involving doctors from Kashmir settled in other parts of northern India that ultimately led to a blast near the Red Fort on 10 November.

“Strongly condemn raids on Kashmir Times, one of the last independent voices for truth, accountability and public interest reporting. This is an attack on free press,” said activist Shabnam Hashmi.

Jammu and Kashmir deputy chief minister Surinder Singh Choudhary said if the raids were carried out only to exert pressure then it would be wrong.

“If they have done something wrong, then action should be taken. If they have done wrong, they will face the consequences. But it should not be done just to create pressure. If you do it only to add pressure, then that will be wrong,” he told reporters in Jammu.

“Journalism should have an open environment. It is the fourth pillar of democracy. They should be given a chance so that they can keep their voice strong. If someone is publishing the truth, they should not be pressured.”

The editors of Kashmir Times said the state agencies were activated against the online daily for doing its job.

“In an era when critical voices are increasingly scarce, we remain one of the few independent outlets willing to speak truth to power the accusations leveled against us are designed to intimidate, to delegitimise, and ultimately to silence. We will not be silenced,” the editors said.

“Journalism is not a crime. Accountability is not treason. And we will continue to inform, investigate and advocate for those who depend on us. The state may have the power to raid our offices. But it cannot raid our commitment to the truth.”

Kashmir Times is one in a long list of media outlets who have faced punitive measures in the 11 years of Prime Minister Narenda Modi’s rule.

In the 2025 World Press Freedom Index, India is ranked at 151 in a list of 180 countries.