After decades of bloodshed, Northeast India records 8 years without journalist killings
Babushahi Bureau
Guwahati (Assam), May 24, 2026: In a significant shift from its violent past, Northeast India has not recorded a single journalist killing in the last eight years, marking a rare period of safety for media professionals in a region once considered among the most dangerous for journalists in the country.
The last major incidents were reported in 2017, when journalists Shantanu Bhowmik and Sudip Dutta Bhowmik were killed in Tripura. Before that, the region had witnessed the murder of more than 30 journalists over three decades, particularly in states such as Assam, Tripura and Manipur.
Despite continuing attacks on journalists across India, the Northeast — comprising states bordering Nepal, Bhutan, China, Myanmar and Bangladesh — has maintained this positive trend. Media watchdog data shows that six journalists were killed in India in 2025, while one journalist has already been murdered in 2026.
The latest victim was Telugu journalist V. Jaganmohan Reddy, who was hacked to death in Andhra Pradesh’s Chittoor district on April 28, allegedly days after publishing reports on sandalwood smuggling. Journalist bodies, including the Indian Journalists Union (IJU), condemned the killing and demanded stronger protections for working journalists.
Geneva-based media rights organisation Press Emblem Campaign also sought swift justice in the case, stating that Jaganmohan became the 28th media victim worldwide this year.
In contrast, the Northeast has seen a dramatic decline in targeted killings of journalists since 2017. Earlier, Tripura alone witnessed multiple killings, including the murder of three media workers inside a newspaper office in Agartala in 2013. Assam and Manipur too saw repeated attacks on journalists, with Assam recording over 25 journalist murders since 1987.
However, while violence against journalists declined, the COVID-19 pandemic dealt a devastating blow to the media fraternity in the region. More than 20 journalists and media workers from Northeast India reportedly died due to COVID-related complications during the pandemic years.
Assam recorded the highest number of journalist deaths in the region, including senior media personalities Dr. Laxmi Nandan Bora and Homen Borgohain. Tripura and Manipur also lost several journalists and media workers to the virus.
The report further noted that although several state governments across India announced financial compensation packages for journalists who died during the pandemic, most Northeastern states failed to implement effective relief measures for affected families.
The Assam government had initially announced a ₹50 lakh insurance cover for frontline workers, including journalists, but no concrete support reportedly reached many affected media families.