Martyr's little 'Gulgul' who became face of free speech row

In a sepia-toned image shared by Gurmehar Kaur on Facebook, her father Captain Mandeep Singh is seen cradling little 'Gulgul', the martyr's daughter who triggered a fresh debate on free speech.

Through her posts against campus vigilantism, 'Gulgul', in her 20s now, has emerged as the pivot in a swirling row, which has greatly polarised public discourse within a short span and unleashed a wave of campus protests.

While through her posts Kaur had lodged protest against RSS-affiliated ABVP over its role in the February 22 North Campus clash, a riled online army of right-wing trolls dug out an old campaign she spearheaded to advocate Indo-Pak peace.
 

Through provocative statements, senior BJP leaders, Union ministers and celebrities only fanned the controversy.

With that, a tinge of hyper-nationalism smeared what was essentially a debate on free speech over the cancellation of a cultural event at Delhi University's Ramjas College which was to be attended by JNU student leaders Umar Khalid and Shehla Rashid.

Singh's martyrdom has been whipped up by both the camps with some condemning the act of mocking and threatening a "martyr's daughter" with rape, while many used it as a stick to beat the feisty student of the Lady Shri Ram College.

Union Minister Kiren Rijiju went to the extent of saying that the martyr's soul must be "weeping" as his daughter is being misled by people who "celebrate when soldiers die in action".

The vitriol, including alleged rape threats, forced Kaur to pull herself out of a protest march held yesterday which she had actively campaigned for.

Kaur, a first year student of English, has temporarily left for her hometown Jalandhar to be with her family.

"No statements from me, my family or my behalf. I request to be given privacy. Thank you," she posted on Twitter, where the number of her followers has rapidly swelled since the controversy erupted.

But what seems to have vanished in the din is her request to people not to identify her as a "martyr's daughter" if that bothers them.

Students groups have taken up her posts as a rallying point for the larger cause of free speech and autonomy of universities. However, her critics have taken up cudgels against her, insisting she was being used as a "pawn" by the Leftists.