An Indian journalist has been gunned down outside her home in the southern city of Bangalore — the latest in a string of deadly attacks targeting journalists or outspoken critics of religious superstition and extreme Hindu politics.
The assailants fled on a motorcycle after spraying a hail of bullets at Gauri Lankesh on Tuesday night as she was leaving her car outside her home in the Karnataka state capital.
Police said they were searching for leads, but that it was too early to say who killed her. Senior police officer RK Dutta said he had met Lankesh recently, but that she did not mention any threat to her life.
Members of Indian journalism associations expressed outrage and said they would protest on Wednesday afternoon in New Delhi.
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"The silencing of a journalist in this manner has dangerous portents for democracy," the Indian Women's Press Corps said.
Lankesh, 55, was the editor of the independent Kannada-language magazine Lankesh Patrike. In November, she was found guilty of defaming lawmakers from the governing Bharatiya Janata Party in a 2008 story — a case she said was politically motivated, vowing to challenge her conviction in higher court.
India has seen a string of killings in recent years targeting independent journalists and critics of religious superstition, stoking worries about the rise of extremism and intolerance in the secular country.
In 2015, scholar Malleshappa M Kalburgi was shot dead at his Bangalore home, following death threats from right-wing Hindu groups after he criticised idol worship and superstitious beliefs by Hindus.
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Earlier that year, Indian writer and anti-superstition crusader Govind Pansare was shot dead while taking a walk with his wife near their home in the western state of Maharashtra. And in another daytime attack in 2013, two assailants shot anti-superstition activist Narendra Dabholkar dead while he was out for a walk in the Maharashtra city of Pune.
Within hours of Lankesh's killing on Tuesday night, Indian politicians from all parties had condemned the attack.
Karnataka's chief minister Siddaramaiah — the state's highest elected official — called the death "shocking" and said three police teams were investigating.
Lankesh's brother said he hoped the culprits would be found and prosecuted.
"I do not know how to react. The assailants should be brought to book," he said, according to the Press Trust of India.
New process leads to panic among jobseekers
As a UAE-based travel agent who processes tourist visas from the Philippines, Jennifer Pacia Gado is fielding a lot of calls from concerned travellers just now. And they are all asking the same question.
“My clients are mostly Filipinos, and they [all want to know] about good conduct certificates,” says the 34-year-old Filipina, who has lived in the UAE for five years.
Ms Gado contacted the Philippines Embassy to get more information on the certificate so she can share it with her clients. She says many are worried about the process and associated costs – which could be as high as Dh500 to obtain and attest a good conduct certificate from the Philippines for jobseekers already living in the UAE.
“They are worried about this because when they arrive here without the NBI [National Bureau of Investigation] clearance, it is a hassle because it takes time,” she says.
“They need to go first to the embassy to apply for the application of the NBI clearance. After that they have go to the police station [in the UAE] for the fingerprints. And then they will apply for the special power of attorney so that someone can finish the process in the Philippines. So it is a long process and more expensive if you are doing it from here.”
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
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Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
- Join parent networks
- Look beyond school fees
- Keep an open mind
