The failure to nab the culprits involved in the murder of free thinkers, intellectuals and journalists has created a situation in which more such murders are possible across the country, CPI(M) State Secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan has said.
He was speaking after releasing the Gauri Lankesh tribute edition of Kerala Media Academy’s Media magazine here on Tuesday.
“The same group that assassinated Mahatma Gandhi is now gunning down our intellectuals and journalists. In the past few years, we have witnessed the murder of Govind Pansare, Narendra Dabholkar, M.M. Kalburgi, Gauri Lankesh and now Tripura journalist Shantanu Bhowmick. It is a matter of serious concern that the culprits in most of these murders are still roaming free. This inaction emboldens them and allows them to carry out more murders,” he said.
He said some of these happenings in the country now are similar to that under Adolf Hitler in Germany. “In Nazi Germany, they killed Jews and communists in large numbers. Then they started targeting journalists, intellectuals and writers. Writers were forced to flee that country. We have to think whether our country is also moving towards such a situation,” he said.
'Strong voice in journalism lost'
Mr. Balakrishnan said with the murder of Gauri Lankesh, the country had lost a strong voice in journalism.
The first copy of the Gauri Lankesh tribute edition was handed over to CPI leader Pannian Raveendran. Mr. Raveendran said in a democracy others cannot decide what you should write or speak.
“It is unfortunate that the Prime Minister of the country is yet to speak a word about the murder of Gauri Lankesh. Compare that with the Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who publicly apologised after the death of a Tamil Nadu native as he did not get timely treatment in the State,” he said.
