Journalist’s body found stuffed inside septic tank in India

Freelance journalist Mukesh Chandrakar, 28, had reported widely on corruption and a decades-old Maoist insurgency in India’s central Chhattisgarh state, and ran a popular YouTube channel called “Bastar Junction”.

The Press Council of India expressed “concern” over the suspected murder of Chandrakar, calling for a report on the “facts of the case” in a statement late on Saturday.

Chandrakar’s body was found on January 3 after police tracked his mobile phone records following his family reporting him missing.

Three people have been arrested.

More than 10,000 people have died in the decades-long insurgency waged by Naxalite rebels, who say they are fighting for the rights of marginalised indigenous people in India’s resource-rich central regions.