Two journalists were crushed to death in Bihar last evening allegedly by a former Mukhia, thus raising a big question mark on the safety of scribes.
This is the fourth incident of journalists killing in the past two years, amply indicating how they have become the soft targets of miscreants.
Police have arrested the main accused while raids are on to nab the others. The miscreants allegedly had a tiff with the journalists over some news reports.
Reports said the victims were returning home on motorbike after covering a rally on Ram navami in central Bihar’s Bhojpur district on Sunday evening, when a speeding Scorpio hit them from behind and rammed into their bike, killing them on the spot.
After committing the crime, the miscreants fled the scene but the vehicle was set afire by irate villagers. The victims have been identified as Navin Nischal (35) and his associate Vijay Singh (25). While Navin worked for Dainik Bhaskar, Vijay was working for a Hindi magazine.
In a case registered with the police, a former Mukhia Harsu Miyan, his son and others have been named the main accused. A Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been formed to probe the incident.
According to villagers, the accused persons were angry with the journalists over some reports. “On the fateful evening, the accused persons had heated arguments with the journalists after which they threatened them with dire consequences. Shortly after that, both the journalists were crushed to death,” villagers told the police. According to villagers, the said Scorpio belongs to Harsu Miyan.
The main accused Harsu Miyan is being interrogated, local Bhojpur district superintendent of police Avkash Kumar told newsmen on Monday.
The Opposition meanwhile, slammed the state government over frequent killing of journalists in the state and asked the government to protect the fourth pillar.
The Indian Federation of Working Journalist (IFWJ) has strongly condemned the incident and called for stern action against the accused.