![]() |
|||
Thursday, June 17 2021 Dive In |
|||
|
|||
That’s the CEO of Senco Gold and Diamonds proudly announcing the appointment of star sprinter Dutee Chand as their brand ambassador. This is part of the jewellery chain’s Pride month initiative. Chand is the first Indian athlete who is openly gay. She will be promoting Senco’s new line of jewellery titled ‘Love is Love’. |
|||
![]() |
|||
![]() |
|||
Government vs Twitter: The sequel |
|||
The TLDR: An FIR filed in Ghaziabad aims to take down multiple targets with a single stone—including the fiercest critics of the government and, of course, Twitter. We look at the case and its implications for the social media platform’s future.
Editor’s note: Read our previous explainer for more background on this ongoing feud.
Tell me about this case…The trigger: It all started with a viral video of an elderly Muslim man from Ghaziabad. He claimed to have been beaten by a gang of young men—who cut his beard off and forced him to chant ‘Jai Siya Ram’. The case received wide coverage in the media—and sparked the usual outrage on Twitter, generating hundreds of tweets.
A new version of the facts: The next day—after the video went viral—Ghaziabad police claimed that there was no communal angle to this assault—and offered a new narrative.
But, but, but: The police’s account is contradicted by the victim's own family. Saifi’s son told Times of India:
The son also said that it was “the inspector who drafted the police complaint and filed an FIR. They did not write what we told them.” And The Wire has a copy of the original complaint written by Saifi which apparently confirms the details shared on his video.
But what does this have to do with Twitter?Armed with this new version of the facts, the police then filed a new FIR against a select group of people. These include journalists Saba Naqvi, Rana Ayyub, Alt News co-founder Mohammed Zubair, The Wire and Congress leaders Shama Mohamed, Salman Nizami and Maskoor Usmani. Their crime: Tweeting the video without verifying facts and “giving a communal colour” to the incident. Also: The users did not delete their tweets even after the Ghaziabad police issued its ‘clarification’ denying any anti-Muslim angle. Therefore, the FIR claims:
FYI: The Wire claims it only tweeted out a link to its story on the assault:
Also named in the FIR: Twitter, which is under the gun for refusing to remove their tweets or flag the video. An anonymous government source told The Telegraph, “Why did Twitter not flag the particular video linked to the case as ‘manipulated media’ even though thousands of people re-tweeted it?” Point to remember: Twitter recently slapped a ‘manipulated media’ tag on BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra’s tweet—which earned the company a visit from the Delhi police.
The charges: in the FIR cite Sections 153 (provocation to cause riot), 153A (promoting enmity between religious groups), 295A (acts intended to insult religious beliefs), 505 (mischief) and 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code.
So what happens now? |
|||
Login | |||
|
|||
|
|||
|
|||
|
|||
Complaints, suggestions or just wanna say hi? Talk to us at talktous@splainer.in |
|||
|
|||
You are receiving this email because you opted in via our website. Unsubscribe from this list. |