AIFMP condemns the violence targeted at Indian print journalists while on duty

Stressing on the fact that journalism is a part and parcel of the Indian print industry, the AIFMP, along with its 69 print associations all over India, has demanded that the government, both at the centre and at the state level, must offer a conducive environment for journalists to carry out their jobs, without the threat to their lives and well-being, overtly and covertly.

AIFMP also wants strict laws against such violence and has demanded speedy justice to find and punish the perpetrators of such violence.

“Journalists are an important part of the print industry, and when their lives are at danger, we, as the parent body of the printing fraternity, must protest,” said Dev Nair, the President, AIFMP.

Nair added, "If print journalists are under threat, then the future of print is under threat."

In the last two months, three journalists were alleged killed in Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh while on duty.

On 4 July 2015, Akshay Singh died under mysterious circumstances in Madhya Pradesh, where he was doing his duty as a journalist following the alleged scam in the Madhya Pradesh Professional Examination Board (MPPEB) or Vyapam. On Saturday, he visited Meghnagar in Jhabua to talk to the family members of scam-accused Namrata Damor, who too was found dead in Ujjain in 2012. An employee with The India Today Group, Akshay Singh, was working with Aaj Tak as a special correspondent since December 2013.

On 22 June 2015, Sandeep Kothari, a 40-year-old journalist from Madhya Pradesh was allegedly murdered by three persons involved in illegal mining, who kidnapped him and set him ablaze, apparently over his refusal to withdraw a court case. The burnt body of Kothari, who was abducted from Katangi tehsil in Balaghat district two days back, was found dumped in a farm at Butibori area in Nagpur. Kothari worked for the Hindi-language newspaper Nai Duniya and was a freelance contributor to a number of publications.

On 1 June 2015, Jagendra Singh, who was working with the Hindi media for the past 15 years, was allegedly set on fire by ‘local policemen and goons’ under the directions of Uttar Pradesh minister of dairy development, Ramamurthy Varma in Shahjahanpur, Uttar Pradesh. He died from the burn injuries on 8 June. According to local media reports, the journalist had exposed land grabbing, illegal mining operations and sexual assault on women in Shahjahanpur, and had said evidence pointed to involvement of the minister, local police officials, and criminal gangs.

Anand Limaye, the Hon General Secretary of the All India Federation of Master Printers has said, "Such an act of violence is an attack on the idea of journalism itself, which is considered to be the fourth pillar of a democracy, the AIFMP has demanded a thorough investigation against the perpetrators of the crimes, and justice to the slain journalists."

Limaye added, “For a democracy to thrive, the right of an individual must be protected at any cost. The right to free speech is the most important of all rights. When freedom of speech is at risk, it not only poses danger to the community but also to the economic growth."

"No economy can survive in an atmosphere of fear,” Limaye said.

The AIFMP has demanded the government to ensure a free and fair environment for the print industry as a whole to grow and flourish. This includes the promulgation of a law that can protect journalists and other members of the print industry from anti-social elements, and a swift system of justice, which should deter perpetrators from further targeting journalists.

The organisation has requested the government and the law and order officials to find the perpetrators of these killings and punish them according to the law of the land, so that a free and fair environment is ensured.

Headquartered in Delhi, the AIFMP represents 69 affiliate print associations across India which include lakhs of big and small print firms in the country.