Murder of a Journalist

Sad news for the Indian media fraternity as a young scribe Mikesh Chandrakar was found murdered in Bijapur locality of Chhattisgarh State on January 3. Local media persons informed that the body of journalist Mukesh was recovered from a newly constructed septic tank belonging to an influential contractor based in Chattanpara area. Mukesh (30), who made daring media reports on corruption and insurgency in central India, went missing on 1 January 2025 and his family members lodged a police complaint. A seasoned journalist, Mukesh used to run a YouTube channel named Bastar Junction, frequently investigated and reported on corruption, insurgent violence in conflict-hit Bastar. His You Tube channel has 2.8 crore views and 1.5 lakh subscribers. Bastar Press Club condemned this killing. DIGIPUB, an association of digital news outlets also asked the Chattisgarh government to ensure speedy investigation. ’Bastar has really become a junction, a junction where all the routes are closed: the path leading to democracy has been blocked by continually showing the fear of Maoism’. The persons in authority, politicians and business community are united to loot natural resources of Chattisgarh and evict the tribals from land.

The young media person was seemingly targeted for his string reporting on powerful corrupt people. Incidentally, Mukesh Chandrakar becomes the first journalist to be killed this year across the world. People demand a fair probe to identify the culprits behind his killing and subsequent punishment under the law. Press Emblem Campaign (PEC) urged Chhattisgarh chief minister Vishnu Deo Sai to take personal interest to deliver justice to the bereaved scribe’s family as early as possible.

A few months ago an attempt was made to implicate journalist Bappi Roy and his colleagues in marijuana smuggling for reporting against sand mafia. The accused in the Mukesh murder case is said to have been nurtured and nourished by the anti-tribal and anti-human rights state sponsored Salwa Judum. The notorious Salwa Judum militia was created by the state to terrorise poor tribals who were sympathetic to the Maoists. Their legacy continues to haunt the people of Chattisgarh.

The South Asia representative of Press Emblem Campaign (PEC) Nava Thakuria informed that Mukesh worked in several media outlets including a satellite news channel. He made a mark in investigative journalism while reporting on misappropriation of funds in various government projects in his locality. It was a road project for which he was eliminated. The 52.4 km project on the Nelson-Kodoli-Mirtu-Gangalur route had been commissioned in 2010 at a cost of Rs 73 crore but the cost increased to Rs 189 crore by 2024.

Dissent has no place in this biggest showcase of democracy. The courageous journalist also faced wrath from the ultra-left insurgents, who remained active in Bastar district, and finally Mukesh established himself as a strong voice for the deprived section in the society. There is an unwritten mandate from higher authorities to kill those who raise their voice against the business lobby-politician nexus.

The global casualty of media workers reached 179 in 2024 across 25 countries. India maintained the number of journo-murders within 4 which is one more than the casualty reported in 2023. All the media victims reported last year from the central Indian region, where Uttar Pradesh witnessed the killing of two journalists (Ashutosh Srivastava and Dilip Saini), followed by Bihar (Shivshankar Jha) and Madhya Pradesh (Salman Ali Khan).

203 Palestinian journalists have been killed in Israeli attacks since the start of the war in Gaza. How Israel is killing journalists in Gaza is getting world-wide coverage because of the on-going war in the Middle East and relentless efforts by the Committee to Protect Journalists [CPJ] but media persons are not safe anywhere in so-called democracies. They are always to work under stress and strain. With the recent upheaval in Bangladesh journalists there are encountering tremendous odds, including threat to life in unveiling the truth.

[Contributed by PEC]

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Frontier
Vol 57, No. 31, Jan 26 - Feb 1, 2025