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Punjab: Newspaper deliveries hit after police checks, Opposition alleges attack on media
Distribution was affected in Hoshiarpur and Jalandhar districts, where vehicles carrying newspapers reportedly reached distribution centres around 7:30am, causing delays in doorstep delivery. Drivers claimed they were asked to unload newspaper bundles for inspection.
Newspaper deliveries were delayed across several parts of Punjab on Sunday morning after police conducted extensive vehicle checking operations, particularly targeting commercial transport vehicles in the early hours.
While Punjab Police clarified that the exercise was based on specific intelligence inputs related to security concerns, opposition parties accused the AAP government of attempting to curb press freedom.
Distribution was affected in Hoshiarpur and Jalandhar districts, where vehicles carrying newspapers reportedly reached distribution centres around 7:30am, causing delays in doorstep delivery. Drivers claimed they were asked to unload newspaper bundles for inspection.
In Ludhiana, readers in localities such as Civil Lines, Model Town, Dugri and Sarabha Nagar received newspapers as late as 8:30am due to police checks.
“Sunday deliveries are already tight because of heavier loads. Today’s checks slowed us down further,” said a newspaper distributor.
In Amritsar, distributors also reported delays. “We got most newspapers very late,” said Rakesh Kumar, a delivery worker. Resident Lakhwinder Singh said only one of his three daily newspapers was delivered, that too late, after “supply vehicles were stopped by police for checking”.”
Oppn slams govt
The incident sparked widespread criticism from opposition leaders. Leader of Opposition Partap Singh Bajwa termed the checks a “chilling attack on press freedom”.
“The media that built AAP is now being hounded by it — just as Modi targets voices that question him,” Bajwa said on X.
Punjab BJP president Ashwani Sharma alleged that newspaper vehicles were detained at several places and allowed to proceed only after police inspected the bundles inside.
“For the first time since the Emergency, an attempt has been made to throttle and intimidate the media,” he said.
Punjab Congress president Amrinder Singh Raja Warring demanded clarity from the government, calling the checks “a matter of serious concern for press freedom”.
Congress MLA Pargat Singh alleged that the drive was meant to suppress reports regarding Arvind Kejriwal’s stay in a government bungalow in Chandigarh.
Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal said the government was targeting newspapers “because they do not want anyone writing against them”.
Checks part of security measures” Police
In a statement, a Punjab Police spokesperson said the vehicle checks were part of ongoing security measures conducted under the supervision of gazetted officers at selected points.
“Punjab, being a sensitive border state, faces the brunt of Pakistan’s ISI’s designs to smuggle contraband, arms, and explosives using drones and various transport vehicles,” the spokesperson said, adding that such activities have intensified after Operation Sindoor.
The spokesperson added that police would ensure minimum inconvenience to the public during checks but emphasised the need for a strong internal security grid.
The Chandigarh Press Club also condemned the police action, calling it an “attempt to hinder the free flow of information.”
“We urge the Punjab government to ensure unhindered newspaper distribution and uphold the fundamental right to freedom of the press,” the club said in a statement.
