Bomb threat to press: No Newspapers published in Imphal, local channels blank out news

Feb. 17: The journalists in Manipur has launched a sit-in protest against a grenade attack on the office of a media house on 13 February. Journalists across Manipur have been staying off duty and are staging a dharna. As such, no newspapers were published for the third consecutive day in Imphal due to the ongoing protest. Even the local cable networks have blanked out news.

Chief Minister N Biren Singh stated in the ongoing Manipur Assembly session that a four-member Special Investigation Team has been formed to probe the attack and arrest the guilty. none of the outlawed underground groups from Manipur has claimed responsibility for the attack so far.

The the All Manipur Working Journalists’ Union (AMWJU) and the Editors Guild of Manipur (EGM) has raised aa strong voice of protest on this issue. The media house which was attacked by unidentified miscreants publishes two of the most popular newspapers in Manipur – Poknapham, a vernacular daily, and People’s Chronicle, an English daily.