Protests have erupted across the country in wake of the gruesome murder of senior journalist and publisher Gauri Lankesh in Bengaluru on Tuesday night. In Delhi, journalists and activists took out a protest march on Wednesday, highlighting that press freedom was being muzzled and scribes are being targeted. They also demanded that the perpetrators be brought to book at the earliest.
However, a video of student activist Shehla Rashid lashing out at a journalist and asking him to leave has gone viral on social media. In the 2.20-minute long clip, the former JNUSU vice-president is heard berating a Republic TV journalist who was pointing a microphone to her.
Stopping her speech midway, Rashid vented her ire on the journalist to loud applause from the audience which had gathered outside the Press Club of India. “I am sorry, I do not want Republic TV here”, Shehla said, accusing the channel of ‘covering up’ the murder of Gauri Lankesh and asking them to ‘get out’ of the event.
{{/usCountry}}Stopping her speech midway, Rashid vented her ire on the journalist to loud applause from the audience which had gathered outside the Press Club of India. “I am sorry, I do not want Republic TV here”, Shehla said, accusing the channel of ‘covering up’ the murder of Gauri Lankesh and asking them to ‘get out’ of the event.
{{/usCountry}}“These people- they work on the orders of the BJP MP- who funds the channel and that is why they have been covering up the assassination”, she alleged.
People on social media, including senior journalists reacted strongly to Rashid’s shaming of the journalist, who was doing his job and pointed out that freedom of speech is not unilateral.
Here’s how people reacted on Twitter