Time magazine has named Gurmehar Kaur as the ‘Free Speech Warrior’ in their top next generation leaders list of 2017.
Daughter of a martyred Army Officer, Kaur came in the limelight when raised her voice to protest against the campus violence by the members of ABVP at Ramjas college in February.
She also posted a photo of herself on social media holding a placard saying, “I am a student from Delhi university. I am not afraid of ABVP. I am not alone.”
“I am very proud to be a part of the Time Magazine’s list. There is a lot of responsibility that comes with a title of this kind and I’m going to mentally prepare myself for it,” said Kaur.
Kaur and other Delhi University students were protesting against the violence caused by ABVP members outside Ramjas College to protest against an event where Umar Khalid, a student activist from Jawaharlal Nehru University was a guest.
As the image of Kaur holding the placard went viral, an earlier picture of her holding a card saying “Pakistan did not kill my father, war killed him” surfaced. Now, in the context of her ABVP issue, these words were seen as fighting words.
Kaur was threatened by online trolls to an extent that she had to leave Delhi for a while.
Following all the controversy, the 20-year-old still refuses to be silenced. Her memoir, ‘Small acts of freedom’ is set to be published next year.
While talking to Time, she said “Why should I keep quiet? While I never asked for it, I was pushed to the forefront. I realised that people listen to what I say. And if I have something positive to say, why shouldn’t I say it?”
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