Members of the Working Journalists of Manipur take out a silent rally to protest the killing of Konsam Rishikanta Singh on Tuesday. Picture by Eastern Projections

Imphal, Nov. 18: All Imphal-based dailies in Manipur will suspend publications indefinitely as a mark of protest against the killing of a journalist at Langol in Imphal West last evening.

All Manipur Working Journalists’ Union also demanded a judicial inquiry into the killing.

The bullet-riddled body of Konsam Rishikanta Singh, a sub-editor of The Imphal Free Press, was recovered by police from a deserted road at 5pm.

No group claimed responsibility for the killing. The police are yet to make any arrest in this connection.

Rishikanta is the fifth journalist to be killed in Manipur by unidentified gunmen in the past few years.

Pradip Phanjoubam, editor of the newspaper, said Rishikanta was supposed to come for the night shift yesterday.It was unlikely that the attack related to any news report of the daily, he added.

The family of the scribe said Rishikanta went out yesterday morning, saying he would collect some money from a printing firm where he worked earlier.

The killing evoked strong protests from the journalist community in the state and residents of Ningomthong Sairom Leirak, Rishikanta’s locality in Imphal East.

While the residents formed a joint action committee and blocked parts of the Imphal-Moreh highway media community held an emergency meeting at the Manipur Press Club. Protesters nabbed a man who fired some rounds in the air in his attempt to pass through the roadblock. The man, Haridas Singh, is now in police custody.

The All Manipur Working Journalists’ Union decided to suspend publication of all daily papers and news bulletins of a local cable news network indefinitely from November 20 until the culprits were arrested. It will hold a daily sit-in during this period.

The meeting observed a minute’s silence as a mark of respect to the departed scribe.

The journalists also held a protest march from the Press Club to chief minister Okram Ibobi Singh’s office.

In a memorandum the union urged the chief minister to order a judicial inquiry into the killing.

Ibobi Singh assured the delegation that action would be taken to arrest the culprits.

The action committee of Ningomthong also submitted a memorandum to the chief minister, who promised to make all out efforts to catch the culprits. Ex gratia will be paid to the kin of the deceased, Ibobi Singh added. The family accepted the body after post-mortem this afternoon.

Condemning the killing, the United National Liberation Front said the incident was an attempt to gag the media. In a statement, the outfit charged that the killing could be a part of “state terrorism.”