Vigils and protests were held across India on Wednesday, September 6, after the prominent journalist Gauri Lankesh was shot dead by unknown assailants outside her home in Bengaluru, formerly known as Bangalore, the night before. This video shows a candlelight vigil for Lankesh being held in Bengaluru on Wednesday. Lankesh was the editor of the Kannada-language tabloid Gauri Lankesh Patrike and was described as an outspoken critic of Hinduvka – a form of right-wing, chauvinist Hindu nationalism – in numerous Indian reports. She was given a state funeral and a police gun salute in the Karnataka capital of Bengaluru on Wednesday morning, during which various political dignitaries, members of Karnataka’s media and arts community, and members of the public paid tribute to the journalist, according to Indian media. The Times of India reported that Chief Minister of Karnataka Siddaramaiah had ordered a special investigation into the murder. He called the murder an “assassination on democracy,” NDTV reported. A statement from the Editors’ Guild of India said Lankesh’s killing was an “ominous portent for dissent in democracy and a brutal assault on the freedom of the press.” It called on the Karnataka government to move swiftly to bring those responsible to justice. Credit: Pushkar V, Senior Photojournalist, New Indian Express via Storyful
