“I condemn the murder of Arun Singhaniya, who was fulfilling an important role in the development of a dynamic information service,” the Director-General said. Ms Bokova stressed that in Nepal, as elsewhere in the world, a pluralistic media served as a vital pillar for freedom of expression, and voiced her conviction that the Nepalese authorities should do everything possible to ensure that this crime does not go unpunished.

According to local media sources, Arun Singhaniya was shot by four men on motorbikes. Several armed groups have claimed responsibility for the murder. According to the same sources, these groups have also threatened the life of the Chief Editor of the daily newspaper Janakpur Today, and BBC correspondent Brij Kumar Yadav.

Arun Singhaniya was chairman of Janakpur Today Publications, which publishes Janakpur Today and operates Radio Today. A journalist from the radio station, Uma Singh, was murdered 12 months ago.

Mr Singhaniya’s death follows the murder of Jamin Shah, head of satellite TV station Channel Nepal and cable TV company Space Time Network, who was killed in similar circumstances in an attack in the capital, Katmandu, on 7 February 2010.