On August 14, 2024, Citizens for Justice and Peace (CJP) filed a complaint with the Independent News Service Private Ltd (IndiaTV) for their news segment titled “Coffee Par Kurukshetra: बांग्लादेशी हिंदुओं को कौन बचाएगा?”. The said segment, which had aired on India TV on August 7, 2024, was based on the significant turn of events that took place in Bangladesh recently. As one is aware, on August 5, the neighbouring country of Bangladesh saw a turn in their government with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina resigning and leaving the country on Monday in the afternoon and Army chief Waker uz Zaman stating that an interim government will take over the power in the country. Before the filing of the complaint, on August 9, Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus took the oath of office as head of Bangladesh’s interim government, and raised call to protect the Hindu minority present in Bangladesh as well as restoring peace in the country.
Soon after Hasina had left the country, jubilant crowds waved flags and danced in front of cameras. Videos showing tens of thousands of people surrounding government offices and residences in the capital Dhaka started coming up on social media. People could be seen entering the official residence of ex-PM Hasina and stealing things from her house, which included fishes, utensils, clothes, etc. However, the celebratory protests also took a turn for the worst as videos of people vandalising an imposing statue of Hasina’s father, independence leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, in Dhaka, attacking the head with an axe also emerged. In the days following the ouster of Hasina, multiple incidents of attacks on the Hindu minorities had also surfaced.
The complainant had raised the present complaint with the broadcaster as while it is understandable that the unpredictable situation prevailing in Bangladesh as well as the history of violence against minorities in the country would lead to people being apprehensive regarding the safety of Hindus and Christians, a false sense of panic was being created by certain people in India through propaganda that was contributing to the chaos. It is essential to highlight that even though the theme of the ‘Coffee Par Kurukshetra’ show on IndiaTV was to discuss the situation of Hindus in Bangladesh, the discussion kept diverting to the Muslims of India wanting to eradicate the Hindus in India so that they can convert India into an Islamic nation. In short, the discussion which could have been regarding ensuring protection of minorities in the neighbouring countries as well as in India was manipulated into spreading fear and causing alarm against the Muslim takeover of India.
The said “charcha”, of which Pradeep Singh, Supreme Court lawyer Ashwini Upadhyay and Shantanu Gupta were a part of, misused the activities taking place in Bangladesh to cause unrest in India and to build a narrative of an impending Muslim takeover of India. The host of the show Saurabh Sharma had repeatedly used the word “Jihadi” to denote the Bangladeshi Muslims, and encouraged the conspiracy theories of Muslims changing the demography of India to take over the country and make it an Islamic nation. Every opportunity was taken up by each of the speakers and the host to encourage misconceptions against Muslims, by speaking about the alleged agenda of “Ghazwa-E-Hind”, “Jihad”, “Madrasa”, “Shaheen Bagh”, and “Waqf Board”.
The complainant stated “It was their (the panel) case that the Muslims of India want to become the majority population of India through “forced religious conversions, population increase and illegal migration” to ensure that India goes through a similar situation as Bangladesh. It is ironic that such conversations took place in a show that was discussing the targeting of minorities in another country while indulging in peddling anti-Muslim sentiments in India.”
Additionally, the complaint highlights that not only had the speakers and the host selectively manipulated the crucial issue of Hindus and Christians being attacked in Bangladesh, they have also brushed off all the attempts made by Muslims of Bangladesh to come out in protection of the Hindu community.
The complaint states “IndiaTV did this, while wilfully choosing to ignore stellar examples of –in that critical period between August 5/6 and 9 when the new government took over—ordinary and organised Muslims stepping up to provide protection to isolated and insecure Hindus and other minorities in Bangladesh. It would have been especially apt and responsible for a television anchor running a show with such a wide reach to have done so, given the volatility of social relations across borders and within and between our communities in India –and given the fact that this reality is in no way alleviated by politicians who use such opportunities to stoke the fires of ill-will, for a television channel like IndiaTV to have portrayed this reality as well.”
Based on the extracts of the statements made by the speakers, the complaint states that the show appeared more like a one-sided show promoting the host’s take on the Bangladesh issue and agenda of the Indian Muslims to take over India and make it an Islamic nation or a religious/sectarian debate rather than a news room debate. Accordingly, it is the complaint’s case that the broadcasters violate the guidelines issued by the News Broadcasting Digital and Standards Authority (NBDSA) but also stands in violation of our constitutional principles.
The complete complaint can be read below:
Related:
Bangladesh: Why Indian Muslims’ voice against anti-Hindu violence matters
Bangladesh Situation Tumultuous, But Does Not Signify Islamic Extremist Dominance