His killing is the fifth incident involving assaults on journalists in four months

This article is more than 4 years old

This article is more than 4 years old

An Indian television journalist, Hemant Kumar Yadav, was shot dead on Saturday (3 October) near his home in Dheena, in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh. It was the fifth such incident in the state in the past four months.

Yadav, who worked for the Hindi news channel, TV 24, died after sustaining two bullet wounds to his chest. His two attackers were seen escaping on a motorcycle.

A police officer told AFP: “It seems to be a case of revenge. The deceased... used to take up various causes of locals who approached him. So it is possible that he could have antagonised someone by his activism.”

Yadav, 45, is survived by his wife and two children, aged five and nine months.

The New York-based press freedom watchdog, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), called on Indian authorities to investigate the shooting thoroughly.

Its Asia programme director, Bob Dietz, said: “The police must act quickly and decisively to investigate this case... Far too often, journalists’ murders go unpunished in India, no matter the motive.”

Yadav’s killing comes after a freelance reporter, Jagendra Singh, died when he was doused with petrol and set on fire in Shahjahanpur in June.

It happened soon after he published an article accusing a state minister of involvement in illegal mining and land grabbing.

Also in June, TV journalist Haider Khan was tied to a motorycle and dragged along a road in the Pilibhit district. He was taken to hospital in a citical condition after the attack, which followed his writing about dubious land deals.

In August, a part-time reporter for a Hindi daily in the Bareilly district, Sanjay Pathak, was attacked by two men who struck him on the head. He survived despite his severe injuries.

According to the Indian Express, another Uttar Pradesh journalist was attacked a couple of months ago and nearly killed, allegedly by the mining mafia in the Chitrakoot district.

Sources: Indian Express/AFP via Khaleej Times/CPJ