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Media owner slain

A Nepali media owner was gunned down in his car in the centre of Kathmandu on 7 February, according to Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

Jamim Shah was the head of satellite TV station Channel Nepal and cable TV company Space Time Network. Dozens of police officers were working on the case and 18 arrests have been made, says RSF.

Shah was shot in the head and the chest by two gunmen on a motorcycle; his driver was seriously injured.

The Indian news media mentioned allegations linking Shah to Pakistani intelligence and the Indian mafia, says RSF. "Although a controversial figure, Shah made a major contribution to media development in Nepal by enabling many Nepalese to gain access to TV stations all over the world." RSF is urging authorities not to rule out the possibility that Shah's murder was connected to his work.

Today, at a protest rally in Kathmandu, the Federation of Nepali Journalist's (FNJ) demanded an end to impunity surrounding attacks on journalists in Nepal.

In a separate incident, journalist Abdesh Kumar Jha, a correspondent for "Kantipur Daily", received a death threat last month for reporting on Indian nationals getting Nepali citizenship, reports FNJ. Four individuals came to the journalist's home and threatened to set off a bomb.