Press freedom: India falls to 138 in RSF rankings
New Delhi, April 25: With increasing “physical violence” against journalists reported in India, the country’s ranking in the Press Freedom Index has fallen two places to 138, said a statement from the annual report of Reporters Without Borders (RSF). The killing of Gauri Lankesh has been seen as the key reason behind the fall. The report warned that hate crime is another issue plaguing India.
“Hate speech is also an issue in the continent’s other giant, India, which has fallen another two places to 138th. Ever since Narendra Modi became prime minister in 2014, Hindu fundamentalists have been referring to journalists in extremely violent terms,” the report said.
The report also mentioned that, “Any investigative reporting that annoys the ruling party or any criticism of Hindutva, elicits a torrent of online insults and calls for the death of the reporter or writer responsible, most of it coming from the prime minister’s troll army.”
Citing the case of Gauri Lankesh, the Reporters Without Borders(RSF) report said, “The newspaper editor Gauri Lankesh was gunned down outside her home in September after being the target of hate speech and death threats for criticising Hindu supremacy, the caste system and discrimination against women.”
“The physical violence against journalists is largely responsible for India’s low ranking. At least three journalists were murdered in connection with their work. More were killed in circumstances that were unclear, as is often the case in rural areas, where reporters are poorly paid,” according to the RSF ranking.
While India dropped two points, Norway continues to top the list of having the world’s freest press for two consecutive years, the Reporters Without Borders (RSF) said. The lowest ranking in the list was North Korea followed by Eritrea, Turkmenistan, Syria and then China.
China’s ranking remained unchanged at 175th position for the second year. Underlining that China’s censorship and surveillance has reached unprecedented levels due to the massive use of new technology, the RSF said foreign reporters are finding it harder to work and ordinary citizens can now be jailed just for sharing content on a social network or during a private chat on a messaging service.
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Murder accused on run for fifteen years apprehended from Palghar district
Thane (PTI): A 66-year-old murder accused, who had been on the run for fifteen years, has been arrested from Maharashtra's Palghar district, police said on Tuesday.
Based on a tip-off, the police apprehended the accused, Santosh Dehu Kurhade, from Wada last week, Superintendent of Police (Thane Rural), Dr D.S. Swami said.
He said Kurhade was wanted in connection with the murder of Suresh Ravji Wagh, who was beaten to death on June 5, 2009.
Kurhade and two other accused had allegedly attacked the victim over a dispute, the SP said.
The official said an FIR was registered against the accused under sections 302 (murder), 324 (voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous weapons/means), and 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace) of the Indian Penal Code.
He said Kurhade had been on the run since the day of the crime, while the other two accused in the case were arrested earlier.
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