By Muhammad Luqman
Syed Shujaat Bukhari, Chief editor of the newspaper ‘Rising Kashmir’ was shot dead on Thursday evening by unknown assailants in Srinagar, the capital of Indian-held Kashmir.
Three armed persons fired at him when the journalist stepped out of his office in Press Colony in Srinagar, according to media reports.
He received multiple bullets at close range. Two security guards accompanying him were also became the target.
According to police, the killers were waiting for Shujaat Bukhari to come out of the building and it appeared to be a planned attack. It was not clear, however, who were responsible for the attack.
“Today at about 7:30 pm when he was coming out of his office and boarding his car, three terrorists, who had come on a motorcycle, opened fire. Two of his PSOs (personal security officers) were also hit… They were shot before they could react,” Indian- held Kashmir police was quoted by NDTV news channel.
Shujaat Bukhari was part of the “Track II” or alternate channels dialogue process between India and Pakistan.
The Committee to Protect Journalists today strongly condemned the killing of the editor of the English-language daily newspaper Rising Kashmir, Shujaat Bukhari, in Srinagar, Kashmir. Unknown attackers shot Bukhari today at close range in the city’s Press Colony, according to news reports.
New York –based Committee for Protection of Journalists (CPJ) has condemned the killing of the journalist.”The killing of Shujaat Bukhari is a profound loss to the journalism community and a blatant attack on freedom of the press,” said Robert Mahoney, CPJ’s deputy executive director. “Journalists working in Jammu and Kashmir have long been subject to a range of threats. Authorities must turn this rising tide of risks by thoroughly investigating this murder and holding the perpetrators to account, the committee chief said. Pakistan has also condemned the assassination of leading Kashmiri journalist. Foreign office spokesman termed the assassination as an act to suppress the voice of the people against the brutal policies of New Delhi.
