Driver arrested in Indian journalist's murder case

(March 02, 2012) Police in central India’s Madhya Pradesh have arrested the driver of a journalist who was bludgeoned to death along with his family two weeks ago. Police arrested Ramesh Yadav on Wednesday in Umaria district, saying his motive for murdering Chandrika Rai, his wife and two children appeared to be money and jewellery. The 31-year old driver, who began working for the journalist last September, allegedly used an iron bar to kill the family at their home in Umaria district on the night of February 17-18. The murder of the 43-year old journalist and his family had been condemned by the Director-General of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), Irina Bokova, who had called on the Madhya Pradesh state authorities to make a thorough probe to bring the perpetrators of the "shocking crime" to justice. Chandrika Rai, a 43-year old freelance journalist regularly published articles in newspapers in the state capital Bhopal. Rai is the 8th journalist killed in India since 2008 to be listed on UNESCO's dedicated webpage entitled, “UNESCO Remembers Assassinated Journalists”.