NNN
IMPHAL, December 16
Scribes in Manipur on Wednesday staged a sit-in-protest and later carried out a silent rally here against a militant group which placed a bomb at the residential gate of the editor of a local TV news channel.
All journalists stayed off work in protest and demanded safety for them. Memorandums were submitted to Manipur chief minister Okram Ibobi and his deputy Gaikhangam. All Manipur Working Journalists’ Union (AMWJU) and Editors’ Guild Manipur (EGM) demanded the two leaders to provide immediate security protection to all journalists of the state in view of frequent diktat and threats against them by various militant outfits.
The bomb was found planted at the residential gate of Imphal-based Impact TV editor-in-chief Yumnam Rupachandra at Khongnang Pheidekpi in Imphal West on December 14 night. Rupachandra is also the general secretary of EGM.AMWJU and EGM on Tuesday held a joint meeting which strongly condemned the incident. No journalist attended work today. The 24-hour protest will end tomorrow at 6 am. No newspaper will hit the stands tomorrow.
The two scribe bodies appealed to all underground organisations not to issue ‘unsolicited’ press statements in future. All Imphal-based newspapers were published without editorials in protest against the incident on Wednesday.
Unidentified people suspected to be militants placed the bomb at the residential gate of the editor around 7:30 pm Monday.
