The hate speech pandemic is spreading faster and wider than the coronavirus in India! The number of vile comments against minorities and their subsequent ostracisation is for everyone to see. However, a recent tweet by Abhijit Iyer-Mitra, a senior fellow at the Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies and a defence economics specialist, has showcased just how low one can stoop.
On May 31, Mohammed Zubair, the Co-founder of fact-checking website AltNews, had tweeted from his official Twitter handle @zoo_bear calling out Dr. Aarti Lalchandani, Principal – Kanpur Medical College for her statement where she called Tablighi Jamaat members “terrorists” and said that the government was wasting resources on them instead of putting them in solitary confinement in jail.
Dr. Aarti Lalchandani refers COVID +ve Muslims as terrorists, Wants govt to send Jamatis to Jungle & Jail instead of exhausting resources. She is the same lady who’d earlier alleged that Jamatis were spitting, misbehaving & demanding Biryani. @DMKanpurpic.twitter.com/N05xM78D2p
— Mohammed Zubair (@zoo_bear) May 31, 2020
It was in response to this tweet that Abhijit Iyer-Mitra responded in a most vile and outrageous manner, calling Zubair “Jihadi Jabbar” and making offensive remarks against his mother, apart from outraging religious sentiments. Though the tweet has since been deleted, it has been screenshot and circulated to hold him accountable for his hateful comments.
He was called out by Pratik Sinha, the Co-founder of AltNews, who apprised users that Iyer-Mitra was associated with many organizations like India Today and was a regular on channels like Times Now and Republic TV.
He’s a columnist at @ThePrintIndia. Talks about flashing at mothers and spitting on them. A proud moment for the investors, owners and employees of @ThePrintIndia, who continue their association with this individual without protest. pic.twitter.com/OJ2qNHzBtN
— Pratik Sinha (@free_thinker) June 3, 2020
He also appears regularly on channels like @IndiaToday, @republic and @TimesNow. I have very little hope in Indian TV channels making any amends because these channels are beyond shaming. pic.twitter.com/S3JjXk1hbG
— Pratik Sinha (@free_thinker) June 3, 2020
However, I do intend to shame every organisation who chooses to give space to this individual at every opportunity I get, and let your audience know that this is your choice. pic.twitter.com/spdWENxaRS
— Pratik Sinha (@free_thinker) June 3, 2020
He had earlier too made a similar remark against Mohammed Zubair.
New secularism: for #ThooBear Muslims attacking doctors is fine ….. especially if the attacked doctors are Muslim. Jihad’s OGWs if you ever saw one. pic.twitter.com/sQlOWtYFvq
— Abhijit Iyer-Mitra (@Iyervval) May 16, 2020
Iyer-Mitra is associated with various publications, most famously including The Print which has regularly published his articles. After his response to Mohammed Zubair, several Twitter users, including journalists have asked the micro-blogging site to take away his blue-tick and demanded the organizations he is associated with to boycott him and drop his columns from their websites.
Hello @ShekharGupta , you are the President of the Editors Guild of India and this man is a columnist with your publication. And despite his bigotry, his rape threats and Islamophobic rants, you continue to publish him ? pic.twitter.com/3K8hUGD7oQ
— Rana Ayyub (@RanaAyyub) June 3, 2020
Dear @IndiaToday it would be nice if you could exercise more discretion in selecting your panelists. https://t.co/0srrQVkwec
— Vijainder K Thakur (@vkthakur) June 3, 2020
Look at this reply by someone from a verified twitter account! How do you allow such content @TwitterSupport @verified @Twitter ? pic.twitter.com/eUBYZUdeD7
— Sayema (@_sayema) June 3, 2020
Abhijit Iyer Mitra is among the vilest people on this platform. His Islamophobic and sexist bile reflects poorly on the organizations that give him space, and they should reconsider their association with him. @ThePrintIndia @IPCSNewDelhi @orfonline pic.twitter.com/JjGCX7JtTJ
— Asim Ali (@AsimAli6) June 3, 2020
This is hate speech @TwitterIndia @TwitterSupport @Twitter @verified @TwitterSafety @jack @misskaul
Suspend this account. pic.twitter.com/lu3cnTHKor— Swara Bhasker (@ReallySwara) June 3, 2020
Only in India can you get away with calling a Muslim you disagree with a ‘jihadi’ and still have media organisations platform you. Even Fox and Co wouldn’t tolerate such crap. Shows how low our expectations from public discourse is.
— Manisha Pande (@MnshaP) June 3, 2020
Prior to this, Iyer-Mitra has called AltNews an ISI Front, apparently in reply to Sinha’s tweet on his comment to Zubair. However, that tweet too has since been deleted.
So-called defence expert’s expert analysis consists of throwing terms like ‘Jihadi’, Jihad apologist’, ‘funded by terror funders’, ‘ISI front’ at people he disagrees with…. Tweet now deleted.??♀️ pic.twitter.com/9tbqjM3pt5
— SamSays (@samjawed65) June 4, 2020
Iyer-Mitra is a repeat offender and has spent 43 days in jail in 2018 for “insulting Odia sentiments and traditions” after he made offensive remarks about the Konark Sun Temple. At the time, many publications had defended him and condemned his arrest by saying it was an attack on free speech.
Twitter’s hate speech guidelines prohibit users from promoting violence or directly attacking / threatening people on the basis of race, religious affiliation, ethnicity, etc. Iyer-Mitra’s abusive rant against Mohammed Zubair is in gross violation of this policy and also the violent threats policy of the microblogging site.
However, even after repeated complaints, neither has his account been suspended nor has the verification tick been removed.
Related:
Why does the Adityanath gov’t continue to ignore Dr Aarti Lalchandani’s anti-Muslim hate speech?
Continued and systematic vilification of minorities during lockdown: Report