New Delhi: The murder of journalist Gauri Lankesh at her residence in Bengaluru on Tuesday has brought forth another chapter of the threat to journalists and free thinkers in India.
At least 27 journalists have been murdered in direct retaliation for their work in India since 1992, according to Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) research. The country is ranked 13th on CPJ's latest Impunity Index, a measure of countries worldwide where journalist are killed and the murderers go free.
As many as 24 journalists were murdered for work-related reasons in India since 1992, Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) data reveal.
But 96% of the cases are unsolved, ranking India 14th globally for impunity in murder cases against journalists, according to the CPJ impunity index.
The surprising part is that since 1992, only 3% of journalists in India have died covering wars, according to CPJ data, and as many as 46% of journalists who were killed while working were covering politics, and 35% of them were killed while covering corruption.
Earlier in 2016, India ranked abysmally low at 133 among 180 countries in the latest annual World Press Freedom Index.
Lankesh, who was the editor and publisher of Gauri Lankesh Patrike, a Kannada-language weekly tabloid, was shot by at least three unidentified assailants after she returned home from work, according to reports that cited witnesses.
Lankesh was a critic of right-wing extremism and her publication was known for its anti-establishment stand. It covered issues including communal violence and the caste system.
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