A tale of two protests: What 'Justice for Gauri Lankesh' had in common with 'Not In My Name'

At 6 pm this Wednesday, Carter Road in Bandra saw nearly 200 people gather to demand justice for slain journalist Gauri Lankesh. The night before, Lankesh had been gunned down outside her home in Bengaluru. All over the country, meetings and protests were held, decrying what seemed like the death of dissent. At the Carter Road protest, the crowd was composed of activists, mediapersons and celebrities; there were also citizens from the neighbourhood – one of the tonier suburbs of Mumbai. Many of the faces seemed familiar – they’d previously been part of the Not In My Name protests, which took place in the same location, on 28 July, in the aftermath of 15-year-old Hafeez Junaid’s lynching. To see this group of people vocalising their concerns over violent fringe elements was heartening – but there was also a sense of déjà vu, in encountering this same close-knit, exclusive constituency (which one could argue, isn’t truly representative of the diverse demographic of Mumbai)  at both protests. Actor Nandita Das perhaps summed it up best, when she said: “Jo dost waise toh Mumbai mey nahi mil patey hai, woh yaha par ek tragic occasion par milte hai (While usually we do not meet each other in Mumbai, such protests have become places where we meet)”. *** [caption id=“attachment_4028631” align=“alignnone” width=“825”]  At the protest meet held at Carter Road, Bandra, on 6 September, demanding justice for slain journalist Gauri Lankesh. File Photo[/caption] One could dismiss Wednesday’s protest as ‘elitist outrage’, but it did raise some important points. Right-wing trolls on Twitter had ‘rejoiced’ over Gauri Lankesh’s cold-blooded murder, in a shameful development. Condemning these insensitive tweets, adman-turned-writer Gangadharan Menon told Firstpost, “As a journalist, Lankesh was entitled to her views just as the trolls are. However, violence is not the answer.” Menon, who was also part of the 28 June protest, added, “We have become very dictatorial in nature. People believe that whatever they shove down the throats of others, is right. Right wingers are not ready to listen to the voice of the people. This is not democracy but dictatorship.” The trolling in the aftermath of Lankesh’s killing assumed significance as some of these Twitter handles are even followed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Cabinet ministers. For those who were looking to connect the dots in the gruesome murder, this came across as the Modi government’s alleged approval to the trolls. Activist Teesta Setalvad told Firstpost the press needed to investigate these trolls, and if they had criminal links. “Do you know that these trolls may belong to the Hindu right-wing? Do you know that the Sanathan Sanstha has openly advocated overthrowing the Indian Constitution? This hatred is being perpetuated in the name of politics, which is ruining this country," Setalvad said. *** The Carter Road protest on Wednesday, was supposed to be apolitical. Condemning the political mud-slinging over Gauri Lankesh’s murder, actress Shabana Azmi told Firstpost: “I request political parties to stop scoring brownie points over the murder. It is not about politics. We want all parties to come together to condemn these kind of acts. India is a beautiful country. Let it be so." The slogans raised at the event, however, seemed to be influenced by the Left-liberal line of thought. For instance: ‘Modi sarkar murdabad’, ‘Sangh Parivar se azadi’, ‘bhookmari se azadi (freedom from hunger)’, ‘jatiwad se azadi (freedom from casteism)’ – many of these same slogans were heard during the February 2016 protests on the JNU campus. Some of the statements made too had a decidedly political tone. “The more we are attacked, the more liberals will unite. More people will come and join us. We won’t bow down to these attacks," a protester thundered amid the sloganeering. Another protestor, condemning the murders of intellectuals like Govind Pansare, Narendra Dabholkar, MM Kalburgi and Gauri Lankesh, slammed the Modi government for making Anantkumar Hegde a minister. “Those who are perpetrating the violence are occupying positions of power at the centre. Politicians feel that if we incite more violence we will also get a position in the current dispensation,” the protester said. One protester sought a complete ban on EVMs, dubbing them “Electronic Voting for Modi”. Songs that have long reverberated at Left-wing protests were heard on Wednesday as well. “Ruke na jo, jhuke na jo. Hum to inqalab hai, zulm ka jawab hai," went one refrain. While identifying with a particular end of the political spectrum isn’t wrong (democracy’s biggest gift is that it can allow two or more differing ideologies to exist), the fear is that Lankesh’s murder will end up caught in a show of one-upmanship between the Left and Right, with ordinary citizens, who are genuinely shocked by the killing, left out of the movement. *** On Wednesday at Carter Road, as the crowds chanted the poetry of Kaifi Azmi and Faiz Ahmed Faiz, something was missing – or so I felt. Where were the youngsters? During the 6 September protest (as well as the 28 June one), I failed to see the youth in large numbers. This is not to say there were not any. I did manage to talk to a few and one of them told me that he had actively participated in the Delhi edition of the Not In My Name protests. But the general picture was dismal. The trend is not new. Even during the Jan Lokpal movement in 2011, the turnout for the Bandra-Kurla Complex rally was significantly lower, as compared to Delhi. In contrast to Delhi’s politically-charged environment, Mumbai does seem to lag behind. This is true of both students as well as working professional. Perhaps, in the financial capital, money and time are more precious than standing up for freedom of speech. A friend once cheekily commented, “In Mumbai, students are more interested in collecting funds for college fests than attending rallies.” This seems, sadly, a correct assessment. The brutal murder of a free-thinker must worry every Indian, not just a select few. This is not just about defending the right to freedom of speech but also protecting the ethos of India – reasoning, debating and finding one’s truth – from falling prey to the parochialism of fringe groups.