Twenty two year old Konsam Rishikanta, a junior sub-editor of the Imphal Free Press, a leading English daily who was brutally gunned down at the foothills of the Langol range at Lamphel in Imphal West district had been with the newspaper for about four months as a trainee sub-editor in the night shift. 

During daytime, Rishikanta, a resident of Ningomthong Sairom Leirak, being the major earner of his five member family, also held a part time job at a printing shop at Babupara in Imphal. He had left this job about 10 days ago after some disagreement with the proprietor. On November 17, the day he was killed, he had left home in the morning to collect money accumulated as unpaid salary dues from his previous employer. He never returned home.

Imphal Free Press on it’s website said “Rishikanta normally reports for duty at the IFP at around 6pm. On the day he was killed however, the IFP received some unusual calls at about 4.30 pm (which is about the time he was killed), inquiring whether he had reported for duty. The obvious answer given was that it was still not time for him to come.” “Probably after killing him, Rishikanta’s assailants found his I-Card and the telephone numbers on his person and were trying to confirm whether he really worked with the IFP” the newspaper felt. 

The emergency general body meeting of the All Manipur Working Journalists’ Union on November 18 minutely discussed the matter relating to the incident with reporters and editors recounting the manner they received the information the first time and decided to suspend publication of newspapers and broadcast of news on ISTV, a popular local cable TV network for an indefinite period with effect from November 20.

Among many other resolutions, it was decided to stage a sit-in-demonstration till the culprits involved in shooting Rishikanta are pulled up or identified. 

Meanwhile the International Federation of Journalists Asia-Pacific, in a release, appealed to state security agencies and militant groups in India’s 

North East to respect the right of journalists to access information from all sides in a conflict situation. 

“This requires, above all, that the non-combatant status of journalists in zones of armed conflict and insurgency be treated as an inviolable principle, in accordance with  United Nations Security Council Resolution 1738 which obliges all parties to a conflict to protect journalists reporting in conflict areas” the IFJ release adds.

Many organizations including banned United National Liberation Front and Kangleipak Communist Party in their separate statements condemned the killing of Rishikanta who is the sixth scribe to die an unnatural death in the last few years.

At least five journalists including Lalrohlu Hmar of Shan daily and T Khupkholin Simte of Len Lai monthly working in Churachandpur district based local dialect dailies and three others of Imphal-based dailies were shot in the past. The Imphal based journalists are R K Sanatomba, Editor of Kangla Lanbung, Th Brajamani, Editor of Manipur News, Yambem Megha of North East Vision.

The last episodes that have gained International condemnation include the life attempt on Ratan Luwangcha, the then general secretary of All Manipur Working Journalists’ Union and a senior journalist who is presently the Editor of Hueiyen Lanpao, a popular vernacular on February 9, 2006 and also detention of six editors by an armed group in April 2006.

Feeling that “only a judicial inquiry can trace the murderers”, the journalists community handed over a Memorandum to the Chief Minister O Ibobi Singh saying “AMWJU has reasons to suspect involvement of security personnel in the crime as the spot where Rishikanta was found dead is a highly secured area with personnel of state forces manning all three entry points. It is impossible for anyone to commit such a crime and escape scot free.”

In response, the CM Ibobi Singh assured all possible assistance to the victim’s family, urging the media fraternity to grant some days to enable the Government to investigate the matter.

But all of a sudden, the government remained silent without giving any response. Only when journalists planned to stage a mass silent rally in association with civil society organizations, a ministerial team of the Ibobi government visited the  scribes on the eve of the rally and convinced them to suspend the rally. However the journalists are not ready to accept this. Thus they took out the mass protest rally against the extra-judicial killing in Imphal on November 26.

“We,the journalists strongly community condemned the state government’s move to disturb the mass rally by prohibiting the rallyists at various points” S Hemant, President of AMWJU said in a release. The public meeting held after the rally felt that the steps which are being taken up by the CM Ibobi ministry is nothing but it seems it tries to hide the accused, so it sought public help and support in finding clues relating to the killing.

Following a public appeal, AMWJU held a general body meeting on November 27 wherein the journalists decided to intensify the stir. As the scribes continue their cease work strike, local newspapers failed to hit the stand till November’s end.

Sobhapati Samom