‘Attack on journalist challenges foundations of free press’: Editors Guild on Bukhari's murder

The Editors Guild of India, in a statement, has said that the killing of Bukhari is a new low.

New Delhi, June 15: The assassination of senior journalist and editor of Rising Kashmir, Shujaat Bukhari, on Thursday evening in Jammu and Kashmir's Srinagar has shocked the nation.

The journalism fraternity has strongly condemned the killing of the well-known and reputed journalist of the country. He was killed by three motorbike-borne assailants in front of his office in Srinagar. Along with Bukhari, two of his security personnel were also killed in the attack. The 50-year-old editor was known as a "moderate voice" of Kashmir, which has been ravaged by decades of militancy.

While the police are yet to uncertain the hands behind the killings, journalists in Kashmir spoke about the constant threat to their lives while delivering their duties in the terror-ravaged state.

From journalists to politicians, almost everyone mourned the death of the veteran journalist who had never shied away from speaking the truth and ended up offending almost every stakeholder in the state.

The Editors Guild of India, in a statement, has said that the killing of Bukhari is a new low in a rapidly deteriorating environment for media practitioners in Kashmir, in particular, and in the country in general.

Here is the full text of the Editors Guild of India statement on Shujaat Bukhari's assassination:

The Editors Guild of India has condemned the dastardly attack on Srinagar-based senior journalist Shujaat Bukhari on Thursday evening that later led to his death.

Mr Bukhari was a voice of moderation and a courageous, big-hearted editor who mentored a large cadre of young journalists from Kashmir. The Guild calls upon the government of Jammu and Kashmir to take urgent steps to bring to book the culprits and ensure safety and security for the media in the state.

An attack on a journalist challenges the very foundations of a free press and vibrant democracy and more so in a state like Jammu and Kashmir that is going through militancy. The Guild also calls upon the state and central government to enhance security for all journalists in Jammu and Kashmir.

Recent weeks have also seen threats of violence against many journalists in different parts of the country. The killing of Mr Bukhari is a new low in a rapidly deteriorating environment for media practitioners in Kashmir, in particular, and in the country in general.

The Guild calls upon the Centre to take note of the developments and take necessary steps to ensure a situation where the media can discharge its duties without any fear of violence. The state and central governments must enhance security for all journalists in Jammu and Kashmir.