Eenadu Television (E-TV)
November 19, 1997, in Hyderabad, India

Raja Sekhar, an assistant for E-TV; Jagadish Babu, a producer for private channel E-TV; Gangadhara Raju, an E-TV cameraman; and Srinivas Rao and S. Krishna, assistant cameramen for E-TV, were killed in a car bomb explosion while covering the making of a film.

As they were leaving the Rama Naidu Studios in Hyderabad, their vehicle caught the brunt of the massive blast, which police said was caused by a remote control car bomb parked by the studio entrance. The television crew's driver, P.

Chandra Sekhar Reddy, was also killed. At least 17 others died and more than 30 were injured. The attack is believed to have been motivated by political rivalry targeted at the film's producer, Paritala Ravi, a former guerrilla leader pardoned in return for his surrender. Ravi is also a state legislator and member of the governing Telugu Desam party.

Medium:Television
Job:Technician
Beats Covered:Business, Culture
Gender:Male
Local or Foreign:Local
Freelance:No
Type of Death:Dangerous Assignment
Suspected Source of Fire:Political Group

 

Disclaimer: © Committee to Protect Journalists. All rights reserved. Articles may be reproduced only with permission from CPJ.

This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.