GAURI LANKESH
GAURI LANKESH
Gauri started her career as a journalist
with The Times of India in
Bangalore. Later, she moved to Delhi with
her husband, Chidanand Rajghatta.
Shortly after, she returned to Bangalore, where she worked as a correspondent
for the Sunday magazine for nine years. At the time of her father's
death in 2000, she was working for the Eenadu's Telugutelevision channel in Delhi. By this time, she had spent
16 years of her life as a journalist.When their father P. Lankesh died, Gauri
and her brother Indrajit visited Mani, the publisher of Lankesh Patrike,
and told him that they wanted to cease the publication. Mani convinced them
against the idea. Gauri then became the editor of Lankesh Patrike, while
her brother Indrajit handled the publication's business affairs. Beginning in
2001, differences developed between Gauri and Indrajit over the paper's
ideology. These differences became public in February 2005, when a report about
a Naxaliteattack on policemen, approved by Gauri, was published
in the magazine. On 13 February, Indrajit (who was the paper's proprietor and
publisher) withdrew the report, alleging that it favored the Naxals. On 14
February, Indrajit filed a police complaint against Gauri, accusing her of
stealing a computer, printer, and scanner from the publication's office. Gauri
filed a counter-complaint, accusing Indrajit of threatening her with a revolver. On 15 February, Indrajit held a press conference,
where he accused Gauri of promoting Naxalism through the paper. Gauri held a
separate press conference where she denied the accusation and stated that her
brother was opposed to her social activism. Gauri subsequently started her
own Kannada weekly called Gauri Lankesh Patrike.
Gauri Lankesh (29
January 1962 – 5 September 2017) was an Indian journalist-turned-activist from Bangalore, Karnataka. She worked as an
editor in Lankesh Patrike, a Kannada weekly
started by her father P. Lankesh, and ran her own
weekly called Gauri Lankesh Patrike. She was shot to death by unknown assailants outside her
home in Rajarajeshwari
Nagar on September 5, 2017. At the time of her death, Gauri
was known for being a critic of right-wing Hindu extremism. She was honored
with Anna
Politkovskaya Award for speaking against right-wing Hindu extremism,
campaigning for women's rights and opposing caste based discrimination.Gauri Lankesh was born in a
Kannada Lingayat family[2] on 29 January 1962. Her father is the
poet-journalist P. Lankesh, who established the Kannada-language weekly tabloid Lankesh Patrike. She had two siblings, Kavitha and Indrajit.
Gauri started her career as a journalist
with The Times of India in
Bangalore. Later, she moved to Delhi with
her husband, Chidanand Rajghatta.
Shortly after, she returned to Bangalore, where she worked as a correspondent
for the Sunday magazine for nine years. At the time of her father's
death in 2000, she was working for the Eenadu's Telugutelevision channel in Delhi. By this time, she had spent
16 years of her life as a journalist.When their father P. Lankesh died, Gauri
and her brother Indrajit visited Mani, the publisher of Lankesh Patrike,
and told him that they wanted to cease the publication. Mani convinced them
against the idea. Gauri then became the editor of Lankesh Patrike, while
her brother Indrajit handled the publication's business affairs. Beginning in
2001, differences developed between Gauri and Indrajit over the paper's
ideology. These differences became public in February 2005, when a report about
a Naxaliteattack on policemen, approved by Gauri, was published
in the magazine. On 13 February, Indrajit (who was the paper's proprietor and
publisher) withdrew the report, alleging that it favored the Naxals. On 14
February, Indrajit filed a police complaint against Gauri, accusing her of
stealing a computer, printer, and scanner from the publication's office. Gauri
filed a counter-complaint, accusing Indrajit of threatening her with a revolver. On 15 February, Indrajit held a press conference,
where he accused Gauri of promoting Naxalism through the paper. Gauri held a
separate press conference where she denied the accusation and stated that her
brother was opposed to her social activism. Gauri subsequently started her
own Kannada weekly called Gauri Lankesh Patrike.
Gauri was a staunch critic of
right-wing Hindutva politics. In 2003, she
opposed the Sangh Parivar's alleged attempts to
Hinduise the Sufi shrine Guru Dattatreya Baba Budan Dargah located at Baba Budan giri. In 2012, while participating in a
protest demanding a ban on communal groups
in Mangalore, she stated that Hinduism was not a religion but a "system of
hierarchy in society" in which "women are treated as second-class
creatures". She endorsed a minority religion tag for the Lingayat community and headed the Komu Souharda Vedike, a
communal harmony platform for the oppressed communities. She was also of the
view that the followers of philosopher Basavanna were not Hindus.
Gauri was known for advocating freedom of the press. She
had written about the wrongdoings of the Indian National Congress leader, D. K. Shivakumar, a close associate of the former Chief Minister of Karnataka, S. M. Krishna. She was opposed to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
and ended her 35-year old friendship with Prakash Belawadi when the latter became a media advisor
to the BJP during the Indian general election, 2014. In
November 2014, the Congress-led Karnataka government appointed Gauri as a
member of a committee aimed at convincing the Naxalites to give up violence and
surrender. However, a delegation of BJP leaders accused her of being a Naxalite
sympathiser and demanded her removal from the committee. The chief
minister Siddaramaiah rejected the demand.
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