J Dey's zeal to expose powerful elements made him a target: Commission

A media rights group has drawn a parallel between murders of Pakistani scribe Saleem Shahzad and senior Mumbai journalist Jyotirmoy Dey, saying both were targeted for their zeal to expose powerful elements.

The South Asia Media Commission India asked the Maharashtra government to throw the entire might of the state administration behind the probe into the killing of Dey.

The editor (special investigation) of English eveninger Mid-Day, who has extensively reported on oil mafia and Mumbai underworld, was gunned down by four motorbike-borne men in suburban Powai on Saturday.

The commission, which works under the auspices of South Asia Free Media Association (SAFMA), demanded a thorough inquiry into the murder by the best of investigating agencies to nab the perpetrators and a fast-track trial process to bring them to book.

"The sentiments of sympathy for the slain journalist, expressed by leaders of the government and political establishment, need to be translated into concrete steps to ensure protection to mediapersons, especially those engaged in writing on the activities of mafias and gangs," KK Katyal, president of the commission, said.

"There is a parallel between the Mumbai murder and the recent killing of a senior Pakistani journalist, Saleem Shahzad. Both, it is clear, were targeted for their missionary zeal to expose the nefarious activities of powerful elements," the commission said.