December 1, 2017:- The year 2017 claimed lives of eight media persons across India. The latest killing was of a journalist in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, who was shot dead by unknown assailants on Thursday. The National Union of Journalists (India) strongly condemns the brutal killing of journalist Naveen Gupta, a contributor with the daily Hindustan for eight years, by unidentified bike-borne assailants. Gupta was shot near the Nagar Palika market in Billhaur, Kanpur. The attackers, three to four in number, shot him while he was coming out of the toilet of his hosiery shop and then fled, according to the local media reports.
This was obviously not the first time that a media person was killed. The list is longer. Earlier this year one Shyam Sharma of Agniban, Kamlesh Jain of Nai Dunia (Madhya Pradesh), Rajesh Mishra of Dainik Jagran (Uttar Pradesh), Gauri Lankesh of Lankesh Patrika (Bengaluru), Santanu Bhowmik of Din Raat (Tripura), K J Singh (Chandigarh) and Sudip Datta Bhaumik of Syandan Patrika (Tripura) were killed in similar attacks.
Ras Bihari President NUJ(I), said: “Security threats have increased on independent minded journalists across the country with very few cases being solved or culprits brought to book. The NUJ(I) condemns the killing of journalists and appeals to agencies to take adequate security measures to protect working journalists. Suppression of press freedom under any condition is anti-democratic and the NUJ(I) will protest against such curbs.”
Ramesh Jain General Secretary of UP journalists Association and Deepak Agnihotri, President UPJA, said: “The latest killing of journalists in India has made it one of the Asia’s deadliest countries for reporters. The UPJA condemns these killings and urges government to take action against the culprits.”
