Chennai: Political leaders including leader of Opposition M.K. Stalin strongly condemned the killing of journalist-activist Gauri Lankesh and demanded arrest of the assailants.
Stalin said, “It is shocking that Indian journalists are being increasingly targeted by right wing groups.” He appealed to arrest the assailants and curb the menace of strangulating freedom of the press with iron hands.
AIADMK (Amma) deputy general secretary T.T.V. Dhinakran said the “cold-blooded murder” of Gauri was “shocking”. “It was a brutal assault on the freedom of expression. The culprits should be brought to book at the earliest,” the AIADMK leader said.
TNCC president S. Thirunavukkarasar said the killings were due to the presence of a government at the centre which had violent and intolerant tendencies. He also appealed to democratic forces to unite against such actions.
CPI state secretary R. Mutharasan said Hindutva forces had taken the law into their hands and they were unable to tolerate scientific perspective. Listing the murder of rationalists, he said the killing only showed the importance of a broad-based protest for democratic rights against the actions of the mob which is killing progressive thinkers.
Journos across state protest brutal killing
The Madras Union of Journalists condemned the killing and demanded the assailants be arrested at the earliest. A group of journalists held a protest here against the incident. They held placards that read “murder of democracy” and “tomorrow it could be one of us”.
In Coimbatore, journalists and photographers belonging to various associations held a demonstration condemning the killing. Raising slogans against the cold-blooded murder the protesters sought a detailed inquiry into the incident and arrest of the culprits involved. They also demanded the Centre and the state government bring in a legislation to protect journalists. A demonstration was also held in Udhagamandalam in Nilgiris district, adjoining Coimbatore.
