The TLDR: A Brussels-based non-profit organisation called EU Disinfo Lab has uncovered a global network of 750 fake news websites and fake NGOs operating across the world—all of them owned by a single Indian company. More importantly, a leading Indian news wire Asian News International (ANI) works closely with this network to amplify the disinformation.

Quick background

This story first bubbled to the surface last year, and this is the big follow-up:

• In October, 2019 a mysterious woman named Madi Sharma organised a visit of 27 members of the European Parliament to Kashmir—soon after the revocation of Article 370.
• The visit was funded by a mysterious Delhi-based organisation called International Institute for Non-Aligned Studies (IINS)—which appears to be housed in an empty building.
• And IINS in turn is owned by the Srivastava Group—which also controls these fake news sites spread across the world.
• Last year, EU Disinfo found 265 such sites. Now it has released a comprehensive report titled Indian Chronicles—which shows the Srivastava’s Group’s influence is far wider, and is closely linked to the government’s favourite news agency, ANI.

The basic deets 

The Srivastava Group owns and operates 750 fake news sites spread across 116 countries. EU Disinfo Lab calls it "the largest network we have exposed"—and it has been in operation for 15 years. The primary purpose of this network: To discredit Pakistan and influence European legislators and members of the United Nations. The researchers say:

"During the last 15 years, and even after being exposed last year, the fact that this network managed to operate so effectively shows the sophistication and the drive of the actors behind Indian Chronicles."

The Srivastavas: The Group appears to be headed by someone called Ankit Srivastava—who calls himself the chief editor of one of these fake news sites called New Delhi Times. More than 400 domain names have been bought either via his private email address, or addresses belonging to his organisations. Also: His mother, Pramila, is the chairperson of the group. BBC News also uncovered an Ankur Srivastava who told Forbes back in 2017 that he sells information warfare tools to Indian intelligence agencies.

Important point to note: There is zero evidence that the Indian government or intelligence agencies are involved in this effort.

What do they do?

Let’s start with the dummy NGOs:

• Commission to Study the Organisation of Peace (CSOP) was founded in the 1930s and won UN-accreditation in 1975—but became inactive soon after.
• But in 2005, the Srivastava Group hijacked its identity and resurrected the organisation.
• At least some of its members assumed fake identities of real NGO leaders—example, former CSOP chairman Louis B Sohn. 
• Sohn died in 2006 but he was listed as a CSOP participant at the UN Human Rights Council session in 2007 and at another event in Washington DC in 2011.

How did this happen? Srivastava Group’s organisations are linked to at least 10 NGOs that are accredited by the UN—i.e. they are viewed as legitimate and invited to participate in its various activities. These real NGOs then cede their slots or invites to the fake ones:

"In Geneva, these think tanks and NGOs are in charge of lobbying, of organising demonstrations, speaking during press conferences and UN side-events, and they were often given the floor at the UN on behalf of the accredited organisations."

When given these opportunities, these fake NGO leaders routinely attacked Pakistan in these forums. Their other agenda: To lobby the UNHRC in Geneva and members of the European Parliament in Brussels.

Where does ANI come in?

Via the fake news sites run by the Srivastava Group. Last year, New Delhi Times bubbled to the surface due to the bizarre Kashmir trip arranged by Madi Sharma. As the EU Disinfo Lab chased down the trail, they found a great many such feku publications—named Times of Geneva, 4newsagency.com etc—all sharing the same MO. 

• Most of them are named after an extinct local newspaper or spoof real media outlets. For example: Times of Los Angeles, Times of Portugal, New Delhi Times, New York Journal American, and Times of North Korea.
• They republish content from several mainstream news agencies (KCNA, Voice of America, Interfax) to make themselves look credible. 
• They also publish ‘expert’ columns by members of various ‘think tanks’. Except the think-tanks or their reps share the same IP address as the Srivastava Group—kinda like the publications themselves.
• They also republish each others content to create an amplification effect.
• And the theme is always the same: echoing the Indian government’s position on key issues including Kashmir and Pakistan.

At the time, researchers published this astonishing interactive map that showed the 265 different such organisations based in 65 countries around the world—all doing exactly the same thing! And all are connected to each other by the Srivastava Group—which in turn is connected to Madi Sharma and that MEP yatra.

Enter EU Chronicle: After the Disinfo Lab’s previous findings uncovered a fake site called EP Today, it shuttered its operations—and reemerged with a new name in May: EU Chronicle which continues the same pattern of shady activities:

"The actors behind the operation hijacked the names of others, tried to impersonate regular media such as the EU Observer... used the letterhead of the European Parliament, registered websites under avatars with fake phone numbers, provided fake addresses to the United Nations, created publishing companies to print books of the think-tanks they owned...They used layers of fake media that would quote and republish one another.”

Also this: EU Chronicle has also pulled off a greater feat than its predecessor—getting lots of real politicians to write op-eds for its fake news site: “In less than 6 months of existence, already 11 MEPs, most of them already involved with EP Today, have written or endorsed op-eds at a remarkably high pace for EU Chronicle.” Also new: A wire agency that calls itself the Big News Network—and claims to own more than 450 media outlets.

Enter ANI: The Indian news agency works in tandem with the EU Chronicle (and its previous avatar EP Today—and is the only agency to amplify and even exaggerate its disinformation. 

Example: EP Today published an op-ed by a rightwing European parliament member supporting the Balakot strikes. ANI repackaged this story—but with a twist. It presented this as an official statement of the European Union. This ANI story was published in the Economic Times with the headline: ‘European Union backs Indian Army’s strikes on PoK’. The Disinfo Lab report points to numerous instances of such individual op-eds being misrepresented as the position of the EU—and then widely circulated via ANI.

Point to note: ANI is considered a legitimate news wire, and its stories are picked up by almost every mainstream newspaper and website. Also this: its stories are published by the Srivastava Group—across more than 500 fake media websites in 95 countries.

The bottomline: We think this infographic from the report pretty much says it all:

Reading list

Read EU Disinfo’s Indian Chronicles report. BBC News covered the group’s previous investigation in 2019—and it has more on the Srivastavas. But The Wire has the best investigation into its Indian biz dealings. If you need an ironic reminder, here’s our explainer on the government’s recent crackdown on NGOs—which led to the exit of Amnesty India.