Today marks 3 years since the death of Gauri Lankesh, a senior journalist and a progressive activist who never minced words while speaking on religious extremism and bigotry. She was shot in front of her house in Karnataka, by members of an organisation having their roots in Sanathan Sanstha, Hindu Janjagruthi Samithi and many other right-wing organisations.
Gauri has been very vocal against the BJP government and other RSS offshoots throughout her life. Her investigative journalism and research exposed many scams and communal agendas of groups and individuals related to the Sangh Parivar forces. Gauri Lankesh dared to talk on the political party in power, not just criticised them but also their allies for attacking minorities, mob violence, hate-mongering. She was outspoken about Dalit rights, gender rights, and caste-based atrocities in India.
According to the Special Investigation Team (SIT) reports, the mastermind Amol Kale behind her death had started planning it a year before and hired the alleged killer Parashuram Waghmare. He was told to kill her for the sake of saving “Hindu Dharma”. The assassinator claimed he wasn’t even aware of who he was going to kill. He was nothing but a tool infested with communal forces who wasn’t aware of his actions. Her assassination gave rise to several protests. Her assassination was condemned by journalists and progressive forces from all over the world. A large section of students and faculty of TISS gathered in memory of Gauri Lankesh followed by the call given by PSF in 2017. She was posthumously awarded the Anna Politkovskaya Award, named in honour of a Russian journalist who was assassinated in Moscow in 2006.
Gauri Lankesh’s death should also be remembered for the fearless and rational role of the press where India is witnessing an increase of unethical journalism and right-wing attack on press freedom. Around 40 Journalists have been killed, there have been attacks on more than 198 serious attacks recorded, since 2014. Attacks on women journalists have also been on a gradual rise. These events don’t just curb freedom of speech and expression but expose the intolerant and violent nature of political forces who are in power.
The assassination of Gauri Lankesh must not be seen in isolation but together with the cold-blooded murders of Narendra Dabholkar, M M Kalburgi and Govind Pansare. Even though some members belonging to the Hindutva group Sanatan Sanstha were questioned, there has been no real breakthrough and these cases remain unsolved, primarily due to lack of political will.
PSF calls upon all to stand resolutely against the systematic and targeted efforts by Hindutva groups to silence rational voices and kill scientific temper while continuing to uphold the values of free speech, justice, rationality, reason, and scientific temper that Gauri Lankesh stood for.
Progressive Students' Forum TISS 