Not giving any credence to the conspiracy theories which are making rounds over the ghastly murder of activist and Editor Gauri lankesh, the siblings on Thursday tried to put a brave face on differences in their approach to the issue of Gauri’s murder.
Gauri’s brother Indrajit lankesh and her Sister Kavitha lankesh held a joint Press conference in Bengaluru to make things clear and put an end to the floating theories of her murder.
“I request, please don't give political colour to Gauri's killings, please give justice to a journalist, a woman and to our sister," said Indrajit lankesh. They made it clear that they want SIT probe ordered by the State Government to find out the truth behind the murder and book the culprits.
The confusion was obviously created by Indrajit’s sound bites to many channels just after Gauri’s murder asking for a CBI probe as he had no faith in State SIT probe and seeking evidence from Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi about his allegation of Hindutva forces hand in the murder.
However, Indrajit clarified and justified and said “let us give them some time. If SIT finds the killers, I am for them. They have started work. let’s see. If they don’t make progress, we will take a call as a family.”
“According to my sources, Sirimane Nagaraj and a few of them have been rehabilitated. It was not that she was working for the Naxalites. She was bringing them to the mainstream and rehabilitating them. During that time, they had distributed pamphlets in Western Ghats against her move”.
“I am not for politicising it saying whether they are Naxalites or right wing extremists. I just want the culprits to be caught” he added.
However, Kavitha lankesh denied the theory of the involvement of Naxalites in the murder. She said, “There’s only one, I think. The Naxalites have nothing to do with that. It was a communal harmony group, they would talk with the Government and Naxalites. She was trying to tell them to come have a discussion and live a mainstream life. I don’t see how that can be a threat to kill her”
On differences in the family, she said, “It’s all media created. We have a single voice. We just want to say we want justice for our sister.”
Indrajit said, “I respected her views though I didn’t agree on them. As Gauri herself was working to rehabilitate the Naxals, that can be one of the angles. It does not mean that the Naxalites are behind it.”
Indrajit lankesh had said to many channels and strongly suspected the involvement of Naxal groups involvement in the murder. He had cited the case of Sirimane Nagaraj who was brought into the mainstream with the help of Gauri lankesh.
He quoted sources who had informed him of a threat to the life of Gauri lankesh, . Gauri was actively working with the Karnataka Government to bring Naxalites into the mainstream, an initiative that hadn't gone down well with them, Indrajit had said.
The split in the family is not new. It goes back to the days when Gauri lankesh’s father, who owned lankesh Patrike, died in 2000. There was a fight between Gauri lankesh and Indrajit over ideology and ownership of the Kannada weekly. In 2005, the fight between the siblings had turned ugly with both of them registering police complaints against each other. Indrajit had registered a police complaint about a computer, printer and scanner which had gone missing. Gauri lankesh, on her part, filed a counter complaint and alleged that Indrajit had threatened her with a revolver. However, in the course of time she parted ways with her brother and went on to launch her own publication called Gauri lankesh Patrike.
Meanwhile Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has said that he has nothing against Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), but won’t be transferring the murder case of senior journalist Gauri lankesh, under the pressure of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
“I am in touch with the lankesh family and will give CBI the case only if the family asks me to do so. I won’t do anything just because the BJP is saying,” said Siddaramaiah.
The SIT which was constituted to investigate the murder of Gauri under IGP BK Singh has taken over and visited the house of Gauri.