Press Council of India Reconstituted: Indian Journalists Union Secures Triple Representation as Centre Inducts 13 Working Journalists and Editors

KalimNews, Oct 8, 2026, New Delhi: In a significant administrative development aimed at fortifying national media governance, the Central Government has officially reconstituted the Press Council of India (PCI) by inducting 13 prominent media professionals, comprising six veteran editors and seven working journalists. Exercising statutory authority under Section 5(3)(a), Section 5(5), and Section 6(1) of the Press Council Act, 1978, the Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting published the formal notification giving effect to these key appointments.

This reconstitutive cycle marks a celebratory milestone for the Indian Journalists Union (IJU), which witnessed three of its active leaders elevated to the statutory council. Assam-based IJU President Geetartha Pathak makes an unprecedented return for his third tenure, having previously represented the fraternity in 2016 and 2024. Joining him from Chandigarh is IJU Secretary General Vinod Kohli, securing his second tenure following his initial selection in 2021. Meanwhile, Bijoy Kakchingtabam of the All Manipur Working Journalists' Union (AMWJU) in Imphal West creates history by earning his debut nomination. Following in the footsteps of Dr. Khaidem Athouba Meitei, the first-ever Manipuri inducted into the PCI, Kakchingtabam emerges as only the second Manipuri member overall and the state's pioneering representative in the working journalists’ quota.

In the Working Journalists (Editors Category), the newly designated members are Pradeep Kumar Jain, Sayed Raza Husain Rizvi, Ankur Dua, Aparna Shukla, Raj Parwana (Narender Singh), and Vinod Bajpai. The Working Journalists (Other Than Editors Category) features Vinod Kohli, Geetartha Pathak, Prajnananda Chaudhuri, Kingshuk Pramanik, C.K. Nayak, Prasanna Kumar Mohanty, and Bijoy Kakchingtabam.

The leadership of this apex media regulatory council remains vested in Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai, a distinguished former Supreme Court Judge who was re-appointed as PCI Chairperson via an official Gazette notification issued on April 24, 2026, securing her leadership for a three-year term. Under her stewardship, the statutory body comprises 28 appointed members alongside the Chairperson, totaling 29 dignitaries. Its structured framework brings together 13 working journalists (split between six editors and seven non-editor journalists), six representatives representing big, medium, and small newspaper managements equally, one news agency manager, five Members of Parliament, and three eminent specialists nominated by the University Grants Commission, the Bar Council of India, and the Sahitya Akademi to oversee education and science, law, and literature and culture.

Established as an autonomous, quasi-judicial watchdog under the landmark 1978 Act, the Press Council of India operates as the vanguard of democratic media freedom, dedicated to preserving journalistic integrity and advancing operational standards among newspapers and news agencies nationwide. Entrusted with drafting and enforcing the Norms of Journalistic Conduct, the council actively investigates print violations either on formal complaint or through independent suo motu interventions. Beyond adjudicating grievances, the council is tasked with advising on free-speech preservation, reviewing emerging socio-political trends that threaten unfettered reporting, and ensuring media institutions retain rigorous editorial independence.