Jyotirmoy Dey, a journalist and special investigations editor with the afternoon daily Midday, was shot dead earlier this month as he returned home from work.

Mr. Dey regularly reported on organized crime and had recently received threatening phone calls after publishing a series of articles about the “Oil Mafia” and the illicit trade in diesel fuel. Four men on motorcycles reportedly followed the journalist before gunning him down as he rode home through the Powai district of Mumbai.

"We are seriously concerned that during the past 20 years, 43 journalists have been murdered in your country, and respectfully remind you that it is the duty of the state to provide an environment in which journalists are able to carry out their professional duties without fear of violence," the global press organisations said in a letter to Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

The full letter read:
 
“We are writing on behalf of the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA) and the World Editors Forum, which represent 18,000 publications, 15,000 online sites and over 3,000 companies in more than 120 countries, to express our serious concern at the murder of journalist Jyotirmoy Dey in Mumbai.
 
According to reports, Mr Dey, a journalist and special investigations editor with the afternoon daily Midday, was shot dead on the afternoon of June 11 as he rode his motorcycle home in the Powai district of Mumbai. He was reportedly followed by four men on two motorcycles who shot him eight times in the head and chest. Mr Dey often reported on organized crime and had recently received threatening phone calls after publishing a series of articles about the “Oil Mafia” and the illicit trade in diesel fuel.
 
We are seriously concerned that during the past 20 years 43 journalists have been murdered in your country, and respectfully remind you that it is the duty of the state to provide an environment in which journalists are able to carry out their professional duties without fear of violence.
 
We call on you to take all necessary steps to ensure that the investigation into the murder of Mr Dey is carried out in a thorough and impartial manner and that those responsible are quickly brought to justice. We ask you to do everything in your power to ensure the safety of journalists.

More about WAN-IFRA's press freedom campaigns can be found at http://www.wan-ifra.org/microsites/press-freedom

WAN-IFRA, based in Paris, France, and Darmstadt, Germany, with subsidiaries in Singapore, India, Spain, France and Sweden, is the global organisation of the world’s newspapers and news publishers. It represents more than 18,000 publications, 15,000 online sites and over 3,000 companies in more than 120 countries. Its core mission is to defend and promote press freedom, quality journalism and editorial integrity and the development of prosperous businesses.

Inquiries to: Larry Kilman, Director of Communications and Public Affairs, WAN-IFRA, 7 rue Geoffroy St Hilaire, 75005 Paris France. Tel: +33 1 47 42 85 00. Fax: +33 1 47 42 49 48. Mobile: +33 6 10 28 97 36. E-mail: larry.kilman@wan-ifra.org