{"id":28439,"date":"2024-04-18T10:40:07","date_gmt":"2024-04-18T10:40:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/?p=28439"},"modified":"2024-04-18T10:40:07","modified_gmt":"2024-04-18T10:40:07","slug":"13-journalists-working-on-environment-related-stories-killed-in-india-15-murdered-reporting-on-elections-corruption-since-modi-took-over-as-pm","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/13-journalists-working-on-environment-related-stories-killed-in-india-15-murdered-reporting-on-elections-corruption-since-modi-took-over-as-pm\/","title":{"rendered":"13 Journalists Working on Environment Related Stories Killed in India &#8211; 15 Murdered Reporting on Elections &#038; Corruption &#8211; Since Modi Took Over as PM"},"content":{"rendered":"<h5 dir=\"ltr\"><strong><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-28447\" src=\"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Modi-India-Journalists-e1713436251456.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"350\" \/><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><em>Editor&#8217;s Desk <\/em><\/span><\/strong><\/h5>\n<h5 dir=\"ltr\"><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><em><strong>13 of the 28 journalists killed in India since Narendra Modi took over as prime minister ten years ago, including media directors, investigative reporters and correspondents, were working on stories linked to the environment. Protecting journalists and combatting impunity for crimes of violence against them should at the centre of the elections in which Modi is seeking another term,<\/strong><strong> 15 other journalists murdered in connection with their journalism since 2014 were targeted for working on stories linked to corruption, organised crime, elections and a Maoist insurrection, <\/strong><\/em><\/span><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><em><strong>Reporters Without Borders (RSF) says.<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/h5>\n<h5 dir=\"ltr\">At least 13 of the 28 journalists killed since 2014 were working on environmental-related subjects, mainly land seizures and illegal mining for industrial purposes. Several were killed for taking an interest in India\u2019s so-called\u00a0<a title=\"sand mafia - ouverture dans un nouvel onglet\" href=\"https:\/\/rsf.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u=5cb8824c726d51483ba41891e&amp;id=7177cd4cc9&amp;e=10c4d6b1bc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/rsf.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u%3D5cb8824c726d51483ba41891e%26id%3D7177cd4cc9%26e%3D10c4d6b1bc&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1713520855263000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2mGkBiG-cgd37h_AB2n3eY\"><u>sand mafia<\/u><\/a>, an organised crime network that excavates sand illegally for the country\u2019s booming construction industry. Closely linked to politicians and often protected by them, the mafia is quick to silence journalists who take too close an interest in its activities, and does so with complete impunity.<\/h5>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"mbaxVsP77z\"><p><a href=\"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/india-newsclick-case-in-india-rsf-and-guernica-37-chambers-call-on-the-european-union-to-sanction-delhi-police-officers\/\">INDIA : NewsClick case in India: RSF and Guernica 37 Chambers call on the European Union to sanction Delhi police officers<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><iframe class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px);\" title=\"&#8220;INDIA : NewsClick case in India: RSF and Guernica 37 Chambers call on the European Union to sanction Delhi police officers&#8221; &#8212; Pakistan In the World\" src=\"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/india-newsclick-case-in-india-rsf-and-guernica-37-chambers-call-on-the-european-union-to-sanction-delhi-police-officers\/embed\/#?secret=JNq84xlIZu#?secret=mbaxVsP77z\" data-secret=\"mbaxVsP77z\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h5>In its\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/rsf.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u=5cb8824c726d51483ba41891e&amp;id=b18db2a020&amp;e=10c4d6b1bc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/rsf.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u%3D5cb8824c726d51483ba41891e%26id%3Db18db2a020%26e%3D10c4d6b1bc&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1713520855263000&amp;usg=AOvVaw29QO5qH0FOvTeeg9zpMbXE\"><u>recommendations<\/u><\/a>\u00a0to candidates competing in these\u00a0 elections, RSF calls for the urgent creation of a system to guarantee the physical and digital security of journalists. To this end, account must be taken of the dangers linked to environmental issues.<\/h5>\n<h5 style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>C\u00e9lia Mercier, Head of RSF\u2019s South Asia desk says;<\/strong><\/h5>\n<h5 dir=\"ltr\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong><em>\u201cIt is alarming to see that half of the journalists murdered in the past ten years were investigating environmental issues, often linked to the activity of criminal groups, mafias that maintain strong links with local authorities and enjoy almost total impunity for the crimes of violence they commit against journalists to protect their financial interests. This is appalling. Thorough and independent investigations should be carried out as a matter of urgency into the cases of murdered journalists and those who have been the victims of murder attempts. On the eve of crucial elections for the future of journalism in India, we call on candidates to undertake to end this unacceptable impunity and to prioritise the safety of all journalists.&#8221;<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/h5>\n<h5><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-28445\" src=\"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/India-Journalists-RSF.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"337\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/India-Journalists-RSF.jpg 600w, https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/India-Journalists-RSF-300x169.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/>Journalists investigating the exploitation of natural resources by the sand mafias or other networks involved in mining have often been the victims of violent reprisals during the past ten years. One of the first was\u00a0<strong>Jagendra Singh<\/strong>, a freelancer who\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/rsf.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u=5cb8824c726d51483ba41891e&amp;id=6ef20abf14&amp;e=10c4d6b1bc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/rsf.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u%3D5cb8824c726d51483ba41891e%26id%3D6ef20abf14%26e%3D10c4d6b1bc&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1713520855263000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3xcj2NgZvo54rhkUuhvdOM\"><u>died in June 2015<\/u><\/a>\u00a0from the serious burns he sustained during a police raid. He had been working on a case of illegal\u00a0<a title=\"sand mining - ouverture dans un nouvel onglet\" href=\"https:\/\/rsf.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u=5cb8824c726d51483ba41891e&amp;id=5a5fbaeba0&amp;e=10c4d6b1bc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/rsf.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u%3D5cb8824c726d51483ba41891e%26id%3D5a5fbaeba0%26e%3D10c4d6b1bc&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1713520855263000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0HWOA9lvBB8eJI7SrjqP2P\">sand mining<\/a>\u00a0involving the chief minister of the northern state of Uttar Pradesh.<\/h5>\n<h5 dir=\"ltr\">In 2016,\u00a0<em>Jansandesh Times<\/em>\u00a0reporter\u00a0<strong>Karun Misra<\/strong>\u00a0was murdered in Uttar Pradesh and\u00a0<em>Hindustan\u00a0<\/em>reporter\u00a0<strong>Ranjan Rajdev<\/strong>\u00a0was killed in the northeastern state of Bihar. Both were\u00a0<a title=\"shot dead - ouverture dans un nouvel onglet\" href=\"https:\/\/rsf.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u=5cb8824c726d51483ba41891e&amp;id=2ab2489e92&amp;e=10c4d6b1bc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/rsf.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u%3D5cb8824c726d51483ba41891e%26id%3D2ab2489e92%26e%3D10c4d6b1bc&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1713520855263000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1JZ3RydsA9dla3Yoh-SOA0\"><u>shot dead<\/u><\/a>\u00a0by hitmen motorcycles as a result of their work on illegal mining activities.\u00a0<strong>Sandeep Sharma<\/strong>, a reporter who was covering a sand mafia for the\u00a0<em>News World<\/em>\u00a0local TV channel in the central state of Madhya Pradesh, was\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/rsf.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u=5cb8824c726d51483ba41891e&amp;id=ea6d6af546&amp;e=10c4d6b1bc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/rsf.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u%3D5cb8824c726d51483ba41891e%26id%3Dea6d6af546%26e%3D10c4d6b1bc&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1713520855263000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2VejYIoDJ5dSgz58va8hgV\"><u>killed<\/u><\/a>\u00a0by a dumper-truck that deliberately ran him down in March 2018.<\/h5>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"g95YBU0oR9\"><p><a href=\"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/delhi-based-french-reporter-forced-to-leave-india-in-sign-of-growing-crackdown-on-press-freedom\/\">Delhi-based French reporter forced to leave India in sign of growing crackdown on press freedom<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><iframe class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px);\" title=\"&#8220;Delhi-based French reporter forced to leave India in sign of growing crackdown on press freedom&#8221; &#8212; Pakistan In the World\" src=\"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/delhi-based-french-reporter-forced-to-leave-india-in-sign-of-growing-crackdown-on-press-freedom\/embed\/#?secret=9B0Nc3IR4E#?secret=g95YBU0oR9\" data-secret=\"g95YBU0oR9\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h5 dir=\"ltr\"><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>Continuing abuses<\/strong><\/span><\/h5>\n<h5 dir=\"ltr\">The tragic killings continued after Modi, the leader of the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), began his second term in 2019.<\/h5>\n<h5 dir=\"ltr\"><strong>Shubham Mani Tripathi<\/strong>, a reporter for the\u00a0<em>Kampu Mail<\/em>\u00a0local newspaper was\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/rsf.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u=5cb8824c726d51483ba41891e&amp;id=be4c1d491c&amp;e=10c4d6b1bc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/rsf.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u%3D5cb8824c726d51483ba41891e%26id%3Dbe4c1d491c%26e%3D10c4d6b1bc&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1713520855263000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0w0BUzkWUQge44z-cKFCxz\"><u>gunned down<\/u><\/a>\u00a0 in Lucknow, the capital of Uttar Pradesh, in June 2020 after voicing concern that he could be targeted because of his work on cases of illegal expropriations by the sand mafia.<\/h5>\n<h5 dir=\"ltr\"><strong>Subhash Kumar Mahto<\/strong>, a freelance reporter known for his reporting on the sand mafia, was\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/rsf.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u=5cb8824c726d51483ba41891e&amp;id=85deccea1e&amp;e=10c4d6b1bc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/rsf.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u%3D5cb8824c726d51483ba41891e%26id%3D85deccea1e%26e%3D10c4d6b1bc&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1713520855263000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3Hy1Q0rAJ0fWYi3rGSw8ak\"><u>fatally shot in the head<\/u><\/a>\u00a0by four unidentified hitmen outside his home in Bihar in May 2022.\u00a0Investigative reporter\u00a0<strong>Shashikant Warishe<\/strong>\u00a0died of his injuries in the western state of Maharashtra on 6 February 2023 shortly after being\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/rsf.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u=5cb8824c726d51483ba41891e&amp;id=f571b64c05&amp;e=10c4d6b1bc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/rsf.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u%3D5cb8824c726d51483ba41891e%26id%3Df571b64c05%26e%3D10c4d6b1bc&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1713520855263000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2ocb_eLqq0Y8Ma2NQMcM8-\"><u>run down by an SUV<\/u><\/a>\u00a0driven by a real estate lobbyist connected to illegal land seizures that Warishe had been investigating.<\/h5>\n<h5 dir=\"ltr\"><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><em><strong>The 15 other journalists murdered in connection with their journalism since 2014 were targeted for working on stories linked to corruption, organised crime, elections and a Maoist insurrection.<\/strong> <\/em><\/span>One of the 28 fatal victims was a woman. It was\u00a0<strong>Gauri Lankesh<\/strong>, who worked on disinformation. She was\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/rsf.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u=5cb8824c726d51483ba41891e&amp;id=98d28a71f2&amp;e=10c4d6b1bc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/rsf.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u%3D5cb8824c726d51483ba41891e%26id%3D98d28a71f2%26e%3D10c4d6b1bc&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1713520855263000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3sIVor0RssCOQ7OfBXx144\"><u>gunned down<\/u><\/a>\u00a0outside her home in Bangalore in September 2017 by members of the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/rsf.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u=5cb8824c726d51483ba41891e&amp;id=b8744871e7&amp;e=10c4d6b1bc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/rsf.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u%3D5cb8824c726d51483ba41891e%26id%3Db8744871e7%26e%3D10c4d6b1bc&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1713520855263000&amp;usg=AOvVaw19fqV5PZ6mdFvREOIKVejv\"><u>Hindu far right<\/u><\/a>\u00a0after being\u00a0<a title=\"subjected - ouverture dans un nouvel onglet\" href=\"https:\/\/rsf.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u=5cb8824c726d51483ba41891e&amp;id=4db2cc3ed5&amp;e=10c4d6b1bc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/rsf.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u%3D5cb8824c726d51483ba41891e%26id%3D4db2cc3ed5%26e%3D10c4d6b1bc&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1713520855263000&amp;usg=AOvVaw370NeX9bB19tbYUIjpHavu\"><u>subjected<\/u><\/a>\u00a0to very violent online harassment by far right networks linked to the ruling party.<\/h5>\n<h5 dir=\"ltr\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>India is ranked 161st out of 180 countries in RSF&#8217;s 2023\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/rsf.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u=5cb8824c726d51483ba41891e&amp;id=a1b839074c&amp;e=10c4d6b1bc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/rsf.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u%3D5cb8824c726d51483ba41891e%26id%3Da1b839074c%26e%3D10c4d6b1bc&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1713520855263000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0rTm4Vq_nNQc6aoIJf-W98\"><u>World Press Freedom Index<\/u><\/a>.<\/strong><\/h5>\n<h4 dir=\"ltr\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">In green, the journalists killed while working on environmental related topics.<img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-28443\" src=\"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Modi-Journalists-Killed.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"577\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Modi-Journalists-Killed.jpg 600w, https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Modi-Journalists-Killed-300x289.jpg 300w, https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Modi-Journalists-Killed-437x420.jpg 437w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-28444\" src=\"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Environment-Journalists-India.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"587\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Environment-Journalists-India.jpg 600w, https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Environment-Journalists-India-300x294.jpg 300w, https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Environment-Journalists-India-429x420.jpg 429w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/span><\/h4>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Editor&#8217;s Desk 13 of the 28 journalists killed in India since Narendra Modi took over as prime minister ten years ago, including media directors, investigative reporters and correspondents, were working on stories linked to the environment. Protecting journalists and combatting impunity for crimes of violence against them should at the centre of the elections in [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":28447,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[83],"tags":[1667,1668,2496,816,395,552,1342,73,1080,1060,43],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28439"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28439"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28439\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28449,"href":"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28439\/revisions\/28449"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/28447"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28439"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28439"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakistanintheworld.pk\/live\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28439"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}