The murder of journalist and activist Gauri Lankesh is yet another tremor that has shaken the pillars of democracy in India. Two years ago, the scholarly rationalist M M Kalburgi was killed under similar circumstances. Referring to that murder, Gauri Lankesh later said that “we are living in such times when Modi Bhakts and the Hindutva brigade welcome the killings and celebrate the deaths (as in the case of U.R. Ananthamurthy) of those who oppose their ideology”. Today the social media is replete with celebrations of Lankesh’s murder . Anyone who goes through the gloating comments will understand who killed the journalist and why. Gauri Lankesh dreamt of an egalitarian society in India. That was her crime. The right wing in the country has always been opposed to anyone who questioned what it projected as the nation’s ancient culture and tradition. People like Gauri Lankesh decoded what passed off as “culture and tradition” ...
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