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Uttar Pradesh: Unnao Journalist Who Reported On Sand Mafia & Illegal Land Grabbers, Murdered
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Uttar Pradesh, 25 Jun 2020 4:34 AM GMT | Updated 25 Jun 2020 4:37 AM GMT
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One of the arrested people told police that a "local real estate figure Divya Awasthi arranged the journalist's killing" as revenge for Tripathi's articles and Facebook posts.
A journalist who had reported on 'Sand Mafia' and illegal land grabbers was allegedly killed on June 19 in Unnao district of Uttar Pradesh.
"Unidentified persons" shot Shubham Mani Tripathi, 25, near the Gangaghat area of Unnao district while he was returning home on a motorcycle. He was accompanied by a friend. He died in a hospital in Kanpur, where he was rushed to after being shot.
Tripathi worked for a newspaper named Kampu Mail.
Tripathi on June 14 wrote on his Facebook profile that because of a report he had filed, an illegal construction by 'famous land mafia' had been demolished. He alleged that the mafia, who was enraged at his action, registered a fake application to the district magistrate against him.
A press release issued by police confirmed that three people have been arrested in connection with the murder. They are trying to arrest two others, The Wire reported.
One of the arrested people told police that a "local real estate figure Divya Awasthi arranged the journalist's killing" as revenge for Tripathi's articles and Facebook posts. Awasthi appears to be the same person that the deceased journalist referred to in his Facebook post on June 14.
Tripathi's uncle Dhirendra Mani Tripathi also accused Awasthi for being the mastermind of the murder, claiming that Tripathi's reportage had "exposed her".
According to Ritesh Shukla, the bureau chief of Kampu Mail, Shubham recently had "some arguments with land grabbers and expressed fear that he might be killed by them".
According to another journalist in Unnao, Vishal Maurya, Tripathi had informed the police about the threat to his life.
Maurya told CPJ that Tripathi had "mailed letters to state authorities on June 15 saying that he had been threatened", and the "same 10 suspects as mentioned by [Tripathi's] brother in the police complaint" were also named by the deceased.
According to Reporters Without Borders (RSF), Uttar Pradesh is "one of the most dangerous regions for journalists, especially those who try to cover the sand mafia". Several journalists have been murdered or attacked for reporting on either illegal sand mining or land grabbing activities recently.
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