The Jammu and Kashmir police on Wednesday identified the killers of Rising Kashmir editor-in-chief, Shujaat Bukhari, who was shot dead earlier this month.
Police sources told IANS that three people have been identified as the assassins.
One of them is the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) militant Naveed Jatt, a Pakistani who escaped during a shooting at a Srinagar hospital on February 6 this year. The other two suspects are local militants.
Shujaat Bukhari was shot dead by three bike-borne militants on June 14 while he was leaving for home from his office in Srinagar’s Press Enclave. Two of the three security guards present with him were also killed.
The police earlier had arrested a youth who had stolen a weapon from one of Bukhari’s security guards. However, the police believe he was not actively involved in the journalist’s assassination.
"He appears to be a drug addict. He is still in our custody but he does not appear to be part of the terror conspiracy to assassinate Bukhari," a source told IANS.
Police have also identified a blogger who uploaded malicious posts against Bukhari.
"He is a Kashmiri militant, presently in Pakistan, from where he is operating the blog," the source added.
The journalist’s murder had drawn massive condemnation from politicians across India and media organisations.
Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti had condemned the incident, tweeting, “Shocked & deeply saddened by the sudden demise of Shujaat Bukhari. The scourge of terror has reared its ugly head on the eve of Eid. I strongly condemn this act of mindless violence & pray for his soul to rest in peace. My deepest condolences to his family."
The Editors Guild of India called it a ‘dastardly attack’ and said that Bukhari was "a voice of moderation and a courageous, big-hearted editor who mentored a large cadre of young journalists from Kashmir".
(With inputs from IANS)