Hundreds of people participated in a protest march in Bengaluru to mark the first death anniversary of slain journalist Gauri Lankesh. Many activists and social thinkers were part of the event.
Lankesh, the editor of Kannada weekly tabloid Lankesh Patrike, was shot dead in front of her residence in Bengaluru on September 5 night a year ago. The murder was similar to the methods which was employed in the case of like-minded people like senior Communist Party of India (CPI) leader Govind Pansare on 16 February 2015 in Kolhapur, Maharashtra, rationalist Narendra Dabholkar on 20 August 2013, in Pune and MM Kalburgi, on 30 August 2015 in Dharwad, Karnataka.
Though a Special Investigation Team has been set up to investigate the killing, the police are yet to ascertain who was behind her murder. The cops have made a couple of arrests, including Parushuram Wagmare, who allegedly shot her.
Freedom fighter HS Doreswamy, actor Prakash Raj, playwright Girish Karnad, journalist Siddharth Varadarajan, writer Chandrashekar Patil, social activist Swami Agnivesh and many others were present at the march.
#RememberGowri. .. when you silence a voice .. it will only grow louder.. and as these voices continue to fight for inclusive.. democratic .. human INDIA .. how many more can you silence #justasking pic.twitter.com/vOo8jDI63E
— Prakash Raj (@prakashraaj) September 5, 2018
Gujarat MLA and Dalit activist Jignesh Mevani, student leader Umar Khalid, Karnataka Komu Souharda Vedike president KL Ashok, Dinesh Amin Mattu, and rationalist Narendra Naik were also present at the event along with Kavitha Lankesh, sister of Gauri Lankesh.
The participants at the gathering also protested against the recent arrest of five activists – poet and Maoist ideologue Varavara Rao, activists Sudha Bharadwaj, Arun Fereira, Gautam Navlakha and Vernon Gonsalves – and their being labeled as ‘urban naxals’ – a group that is considered to be ‘invisible enemies of India’. Veteran actor and playwright Girish Karnad was seen at the protest with a placard reading ‘Me Too Urban Naxal’.
Girish Karnad takes a stand! At the commemorative meeting on the first anniversary of Gauri Lankesh’s assassination in Bangalore today. pic.twitter.com/Iq1ML2hb3n
— Siddharth (@svaradarajan) September 5, 2018
देश की एक बेटी गौरी को अन्याय के ख़िलाफ़ बेख़ौफ़ होकर बोलने पर गोली मार दी गई और दूसरी बेटी सोफिया को भाजपा को फासीवादी कहने पर जेल भेजने की कोशिश की गई। लेकिन ना गौरी की आवाज़ दबेगी, ना सोफिया की। गौरी लंकेश की बेख़ौफ़ आवाज़ सदैव युवाओं को अन्याय के खिलाफ संघर्ष की प्रेरणा देगी। pic.twitter.com/tkYHKK9Hjp
— Kanhaiya Kumar (@kanhaiyakumar) September 5, 2018
It's one year since GauriLankesh was killed. The SIT has managed to track down&arrest many involved in her killing.They belong to several Hindutva orgs who were also making bombs to blow up Ganpati Mandaps&churches&Eid gatherings. Ppl who celebrated her killing are still in power
— Prashant Bhushan (@pbhushan1) September 5, 2018
Here’s a documentary titled Our Gauri on the firebrand journalist.
