Shujaat Bukhari, editor of Rising Kashmir, a prominent news outlet in the Valley, was shot dead by unidentified gunmen on Thursday. He was shot at multiple times outside his office in Press Colony in Srinagar when he was leaving for an iftar party, a day ahead of Eid. Two personal security officers (PSO) who were accompanying him were also shot at.
According to a report by NDTV, he received multiple bullet injuries. He, along with his PSOs, were rushed to the hospital. Bukhari and the two security officers succumbed to injuries while undergoing treatment soon after they reached the hospital.
Bukhari, who was in his 50s, was instrumental in organising several conferences for peace in the Kashmir Valley. He was also part of the Track II process with Pakistan. He was given police protection in the year 2000 following an attack.
In an obituary for the Indian Express, senior journalist Seema Chisti described him as “a journalist with spunk, courage and a keen sense of his calling, of telling the story, Bukhari fundamentally believed it was his bounden duty to jump fences between holders of different truths and come to his own conclusions. It is no surprise that his ‘pinned tweet’ is from an Editors Conference in Lisbon in May. He liked being in many worlds at the same time.”
The attack triggered strong reactions from all quarters:
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.
— Mehbooba Mufti (@MehboobaMufti) June 14, 2018
