In a strongly worded statement of commemoration on August 6, 2025, the Coalition for Nuclear Disarmament and Peace (CNDP) states that, ‘as we mark eight decades of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, we must confront the fact that this template of misinformation crafted in 1945 remains largely intact. Today, we live in an era where media monopolies and concentrated information power have reached unprecedented levels. Social and mainstream media alike often serve more as instruments of propaganda rather than as platforms for critical analysis. As a result, the global public remains dangerously uninformed about what a nuclear war would actually mean for humanity and the planet.

‘We are witnessing an alarming resurgence of militarism and nuclear brinkmanship. Nations are modernising their arsenals, dismantling arms control frameworks, and inflating defence budgets. Today, from South Asia to West Asia, nuclear tensions simmer dangerously. Recent escalations from the near-war between India and Pakistan to Israeli-US strikes in Iran underline how quickly the threat of nuclear confrontation can re-enter our reality.

‘But perhaps the most insidious threat lies in how these issues are reported or rather, misreported. Public fear is stoked without accompanying understanding. The voices of peace, disarmament, and justice are routinely marginalised, while the dominant narratives reinforce inequality, nationalism, and the illusion of “strategic deterrence.”’

On this occasion, says the statement, the Coalition for Nuclear Disarmament and Peace (CNDP), Indian Doctors for Peace and Development (IDPD) and PEACE has also organised a special lecture by senior journalist and founder of the People’s Archive of Rural India, P. Sainath entitled The Media and the Bomb- The Big Lie template for reporting nuclear issues was set in Hiroshima-Nagasaki. The lecture will be chaired by Prof. Anuradha Chenoy (Academician) and is being held at HKS Surjeet Bhawan, New Delhi on Saturday August 9 at 5 p.m.

Related:

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The DUJ had, in its statement, recalled with pride the huge contribution made by women journalists to the freedom of speech and expression. Many women have struggled to enter our challenging profession and make a space for themselves within it. They have made great strides in the news business, handling every beat, entering every field, ranging from politics to business to sports. They have fought social prejudice to work odd hours, do night shifts, travel to distant places, risk their own safety to chase a story. Television and social media have made women reporters very visible and they are no longer treated as exceptions.

“Most journalists tend to be opinionated, informed, independent thinkers — traits that go with the territory.  However both women and men in the profession are under increasing pressure to conform, to write and report according to the diktats of media oligarchs and managements. Media barons kowtow to governments as they depend on advertising largesse to run their empires. “

The DUJ has also expressed deep regrets that because of the skewed economics of the media industry and the larger business interests of ambitious media barons, journalists are forced to push a pro big business and pro government agenda. The space for free thought and expression has been shrinking and many bold, talented, creative journalists have been marginalised, even rendered unemployed.

Under these circumstances, a number of such journalists have started their own YouTube channels and many have large followings.  Women still have to catch up in this area. The majority of anchors and commentators on digital news platforms are overwhelmingly male and little effort is made to include women on ‘manels’.

The media, whether mainstream or digital, is dominated by upper caste males and excludes lower castes and religious and ethnic minorities. Women journalists are still a minority within the profession and sexual harassment by powerful bosses is not uncommon.

Hence, on IWD, the DUJ has called for a more inclusive media that includes the perspectives, voices and concerns of ordinary people. Also, the DUJ has urged greater focus on social issues, on people’s rights to food, health care, education and a healthier greener environment. We regret the growing media obsession with flashy weddings and glamourous events.

The DUJ has also condemned the growing communalization of the media and its role in polarizing Indian society. Several TV anchors, both women and men, display rancour and open hostility towards opposition politicians invited to their shows, but genuflect before those from the ruling party.

In this polarised environment independent journalists face threats from both state and non-state actors. Women journalists in a particular are targeted by trolls, with sexist abuse, rape and death threats on social media.

The DUJ, in the statement issued by Sujata Madhok President, SK Pande, Vice-President and AM Jigeesh, General Secretary has also demanded that both social media companies and the government take measures to stop such anonymous abuse and threats to journalists.

The DUJ has demanded law to protect journalists from arbitrary arrests, raids on their homes and vengeful defamation cases against those who investigate and report the truth in these perilous times.

Related:

Two journalists seriously injured amid Farmers’ Protests, DUJ condemns police action, ask for farmers demands to be settled

DUJ Protests freezing of media accounts

The post On Women’s Day DUJ Call for a Less Polarized, More Inclusive Media appeared first on SabrangIndia.

In a statement issued yesterday, The Kashmir Walla describes the move as an instance of “opaque censorship” and yet another severe blow to the freedom of the press in Jammu and Kashmir.

The magazine’s staff were notified by their service provider that the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology had blocked access to the website within India, invoking the Information Technology Act of 2000.  Their Facebook page, boasting nearly half a million followers, was taken down, and access to their Twitter account was “restricted”, citing what was described as a “legal demand.” As per the statement issued by the Kashmir Walla, all this was done while the staff were in the process of vacating their office space in Srinagar, having been served an eviction notice by the property owner.

NWMI has, in its statement, pointed out that this blocking and censorship of the magazine’s website comes at a time when Fahad Shah, the founder-editor-in-chief of The Kashmir Walla, has been incarcerated for 18 months. Shah is currently contesting various charges levelled against him, including the alleged promotion of terrorism, dissemination of false information, and incitement to violence. He has faced imprisonment on five separate occasions within four months, with three instances involving First Information Reports under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and one involving the application of the Public Safety Act.

A trainee reporter with the magazine, Sajad Gul, is also detained under the draconian Public Safety Act (PSA) and is currently lodged in a prison in Uttar Pradesh. Gul was arrested on January 6, 2022, after he shared a video in which a family expressed allegedly “anti-India” sentiments following the death of their family member in an exchange of fire with security forces in Srinagar.

The staff of The Kashmir Walla say that they are still in the process of comprehending the implications of this latest development. Their statement is an eloquent comment on the plight of independent media in Kashmir: “There isn’t a lot left for us to say anymore. Since 2011, The Kashmir Walla has strived to remain an independent, credible, and courageous voice of the region in the face of unimaginable pressure from the authorities while we watched ourselves being ripped apart, bit by bit.”

The deliberate targeting of The Kashmir Walla, through the arrest of its editors and contributors and now the blocking of its website and social media accounts, indicates the extent to which the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led Union government can go to muzzle the press in Kashmir.

By blocking this crucial news magazine, the government seeks to silence a critical voice and denies readers in India access to its rich repository of stories showcasing everyday life in conflict-ridden Kashmir. Regrettably, the authorities appear to have prevailed upon house-owners to terminate the magazine’s office lease.  An independent media requires a support system to flourish, and intimidation by the authorities contributes to eroding this support structure of essential services.

NWMI has also demanded that authorities desist from exerting pressure on ordinary citizens such as house owners, to prevent them renting space to The Kashmir Walla.

Further, NWMI has also demanded that the authorities stop this backdoor censorship of independent media. The Kashmir Walla must be allowed to be published freely on the internet, and access to its website and its social media platforms must be restored.

Related:

Fahad Shah PSA case quashed, charges “mere surmise” says High Court

Media freedom in Kashmir after Art.370 abrogation

Why has the NIA arrested Kashmiri journalist Irfan Mehraj in a ‘terror funding’ case?
March 22, 2023

Delhi police cancels public meeting, still afraid of the “K” word!

New Tales in Kashmir’s New Order : The Forgotten Stories

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The Musalmans and a United Nation-India

Today, November 11 is the 128^th Birth Anniversary of Maulana Azad. In 1992 he was posthumously awarded India’s highest civilian award, the Bharat Ratna. He was 70 years when he passed away on February 22, 1958.

Maulana Abul Kalam Azad was twice elected President of the Indian National Congress, in 1923 and again in 1940. This excerpt from his historic address made at the Ramgarh Session of the grand old party are soul searching on the observations on the minorities and the syncretic fusion of religions on the sub-continent. The rest of the address may be read here.
 
“In 1923 you elected me President of this National Assembly. For the second time, after seventeen years, you have once again conferred upon me the same honour. Seventeen years is not a long period in the history of national struggles. But now the pace of events and world change is so rapid that our old standards no longer apply. During these last seventeen years we have passed through many stages, one after another. We had a long journey before us, and it was inevitable that we should pass through several stages.

“We rested at many a point no doubt, but never stopped. We surveyed and examined every prospect; but we were not ensnared by it, and passed on. We faced many ups and downs, but always our faces were turned towards the goal. The world may have doubted nur intentions and determination, but we never had a moment’s doubt. Our path was full of difficulties, and at every step we were faced with great obstacles. It may be that we did not proceed as rapidly as we desired, but we did not flinch from marching forward.

“If we look back upon the period between 1923 and 1940, 1923 will appear to us a faded landmark in the distance. In 1923 we desired to reach our goal; but the goal was so distant then that even the milestones were hidden from our eyes. Raise your eyes today and look ahead. Not only do you see the milestones clearly, but the goal itself is not distant. But this is evident: that nearer we get to the goal, the more intense does our struggle become. Although the rapid march of events has taken us farther from our old landmark and brought us nearer our goal, yet it has created new troubles and difficulties for us. Today our caravan is passing a very critical stage. The essential difficulty of such a critical period lies in its conflicting possibilities. It is very probable that a correct step may bring us very near our goal; and on the other hand, a false step may land us in fresh troubles and difficulties.

“At such a critical juncture you have elected me President, and thus demonstrated the great confidence you have in one of your co-workers. It is a great honour and a great responsibility. I am grateful for the honour, and crave your support in shouldering the responsibility. I am confident that the fulness of your confidence in me will be a measure of the fulness of the support that I shall continue to receive. 
 
“I am a Musalman and am proud of that fact. Islam’s splendid traditions of thirteen hundred years are my inheritance. I am unwilling to lose even the smallest part of this inheritance. The teaching and history of Islam, its arts and letters and civilisation, are my wealth and my fortune. It is my duty to protect them.

“As a Musalman I have a special interest in Islamic religion and culture, and I cannot tolerate any interference with them. But in addition to these sentiments, I have others also which the realities and conditions of my life have forced upon me. The spirit of Islam does not come in the way of these sentiments; it guides and helps me forward.

“I am proud of being an Indian. I am a part of the indivisible unity that is Indian nationality. I am indispensable to this noble edifice, and without me this splendid structure of India is incomplete. I am an essential element which has gone to build India. I can never surrender this claim.

“It was India’s historic destiny that many human races and cultures and religions should flow to her, finding a home in her hospitable soil, and that many a caravan should find rest here. Even before the dawn of history, these caravans trekked into India, and wave after wave of newcomers followed. This vast and fertile land gave welcome to all, and took them to her bosom. One of the last of these caravans, following the footsteps of its predecessors, was that of the followers of Islam. This came here and settled here for good.

“This led to a meeting of the culture-currents of two different races. Like the Ganga and Jumna, they flowed for a while through separate courses, but nature’s immutable law brought them together and joined them in a sangam. This fusion was a notable event in history. Since then, destiny, in her own hidden way, began to fashion a new India in place of the old. We brought our treasures with us, and India too was full of the riches of her own precious heritage. We gave our wealth to her, and she unlocked the doors of her own treasures to us. We gave her what she needed most, the most precious of gifts from Islam’s treasury, the message of democracy and human equality.

“Full eleven centuries have passed by since then. Islam has now as great a claim on the soil of India as Hinduism. If Hinduism has been the religion of the people here for several thousands. of years, Islam also has been their religion for a thousand years. Just as a Hindu can say with pride that he is an Indian and follows Hinduism, so also we can say with equal pride that we are Indians and follow Islam. I shall enlarge this orbit still further. The Indian Christian is equally entitled to say with pride that he is an Indian and is following a religion of India, namely Christianity.

“Eleven hundred years of common history have enriched India with our common achievement. Our languages, our poetry, our literature, our culture, our art, our dress, our manners and customs, the innumerable happenings of our daily life, everything bears the stamp of our joint endeavour. There is indeed no aspect of our life which has escaped this stamp. Our languages were different, but we grew to use a common language; our manners and customs were dissimilar, but they acted and reacted on each other, and thus produced a new synthesis. Our old dress may be seen only in ancient pictures of bygone days; no one wears it today.

“This joint wealth is the heritage of our common nationality, and we do not want to leave it and go back to the times when this joint life had not begun. If there are any Hindus amongst us who desire to bring back the Hindu life of a thousand years ago and more, they dream, and such dreams are vain fantasies. So also if there are any Muslims who wish to revive their past civilization and culture, which they brought a thousand years ago from Iran and Central Asia, they dream also, and the sooner they wake up the better. These are unnatural fancies which cannot take root in the soil of reality. I am one of those who believe that revival may be a necessity in a religion but in social matters it is a denial of progress.

“This thousand years of our joint life has moulded us into a common nationality. This cannot be done artificially. Nature does her fashioning through her hidden processes in the course of centuries. The cast has now been moulded and destiny has set her seal upon it. Whether we like it or not, we have now become an Indian nation, united and indivisible. No fantasy or artificial scheming to separate and divide can break this unity. We must accept the logic of fact and history, and engage ourselves in the fashioning of our future destiny. 

Conclusion
“I shall not take any more of your time. My address must end now. But before I do so, permit me to remind you that our success depends upon three factors: unity, discipline, and full confidence in Mahatma Gandhi’s leadership. The glorious past record of our movement was due to his great leadership, and it is only under his leadership that we can look forward to a future of successful achievement.
The time of our trial is upon us. We have already focussed the world’s attention. Let us endeavour to prove ourselves worthy. “
 
(Source: Congress Presidential Addresses, Volume Five: 1940-1985, ed. by A. M. Zaidi (New Delhi: Indian Institute of Applied Political Research, 1985), pp. 17-38)

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A Delhi Court has recently held that since there is no statutory exemption for journalists, they can be compelled to reveal their “sources” to investigating agencies if the disclosure of the source is essential and vital to the investigation proceedings.

Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Anjani Mahajan of Rouse Avenue Courts vide order dated January 17, 2023, rejected the closure report filed by the Central bureau of Investigation (CBI) as they had chosen not to take the investigation to its logical conclusion owing to the leak of the initial report.

Facts of the case: The CBI had conducted a preliminary enquiry into the assets/wealth acquired by Mulayam Singh Yadav and his family members as directed by the Supreme Court. Accordingly, a status report based on the evidence collected was prepared and placed in two sealed cover envelopes before the Supreme Court and a day before the final hearing before the court, the Times of India (New Delhi) published a news article captioned “CBI may admit Mulayam was framed-DIG’s internal note says agency had not verified in PIL”. This news was also aired on Star News and CCN-IBN.

The CBI thus filed an FIR under sections 120B read with 469, 500 and 471 of the IPC against unknown persons for preparing a fake and fabricated report to tarnish the reputation of CBI. It was alleged in the complaint that these unknown persons during the year 2008-2009 entered into criminal conspiracy and with the intent to commit forgery for purpose of harming the reputation of the CBI and CBI officers, used as genuine, a forged document, printed/aired false and fabricated news in newspapers/on TV channels. It stated that they surreptitiously collected some documents relating to the enquiry conducted by CBI.

Further, defamation cases were also filed against the newspaper and news channels.

Sources of journalists

Coming to the point of journalists and their sources, the court held,

Merely because the concerned journalists denied to reveal their respective sources, as stated in the final report, the investigating agency should not have put a halt to the entire investigation.

The court while observing that there is no statutory exemption in India to journalists from disclosing their sources to investigating agencies, held that “investigating agency can always bring to the notice of the concerned journalists the requirement of disclosure of the source being essential and vital to the investigation proceedings”. Further the court also pointed out that the CBI was well within its power and was fully equipped under IPC and CrPC (section 91) to require the public persons to mandatorily join in an investigation where the investigating agency is of the opinion that such public persons are privy to any facts or circumstances pertaining to the case under investigation and public persons are under a legal duty to so join the investigation.

17. Further enquiry is required to be conducted from the concerned journalists on the aspect of their respective source from whom they received the purported impugned forged documents which became the basis of their respective news items

The court also said that investigation is “required to be carried out by the CBI on the modus operandi adopted by the culprits for gaining access to/obtaining the official documents including probing involvement of any insider in the acts alleged and preparing the alleged forged 17 pages review note.”

The Delhi Court’s order may be read here:

Other Instances of Court Interpretation

Bengaluru

On January 5, Bengaluru Police issued a notice to founder and editor of news portal, The File, G.Mahantesh as it had published to an e-office file noting of the Karnataka Education Department. The Bengaluru Cybercrime Police asked Mahantesh to reveal the source of the document on which the story was based along with the identity, name, address and ID card of the source, reported LiveLaw.

The file pertained to the reinstatement of an accused in the teacher recruitment scam as managing director of the Karnataka Text Book Society.

Delhi High Court’s take

In Jai Parkash Aggarwal vs Vishambhar Dutt Sharma 30 (1986) DLT 21, the Delhi High Court held that “Press does not have an absolute privilege not to disclose the source of information on the basis of which the news item has been published.” (para 5)

However, it also held that journalists neither have absolute immunity nor any obligation to disclose their source.

The court held thus,

Before the Court directs the disclosure of source it must satisfy itself that it is in the nature of justice and is not against the public interest It will necessarily depend on the nature of the case and the offending item of the news published. (para 5)

Supreme Court’s take

In October 2021, a bench led by CJI NV Ramana in Writ Petition (Crl.) No. 314 OF 2021 (order dated October 27, 2021) observed that an important and necessary corollary of freedom of press is to ensure the protection of sources of information.

40… Protection of journalistic sources is one of the basic conditions for the freedom of press. Without such protection, sources may be deterred from assisting the press in informing the public on matters of public interest.

In the order, the court gave due regard to the importance of the protection of journalistic sources for press freedom in a democratic society. While referring to the snooping of Pegasus software it said that it could have a potential chilling effect. The court’s observation cannot be taken as obiter dictum since the same was essential to the final decision which was to set up a technical committee to investigate the use of Pegasus upon certain individuals including journalists in the country. The petitioners in the case had alleged that Israeli-origin malware, Pegasus was used to target those who were vocal critics of the central government.

Press Council Act

The Press Council Act, section 15, speaks about the protection of journalistic sources. However, the same is with regards to any inquiry that is being made by the Press Council itself. Section 15 vests in the said Council  the powers of a civil court while trying a suit under the Code of Civil Procedure. However, subsection (2) of section 15 states thus,

(2) Nothing in sub-section (1) shall be deemed to compel any newspaper, news agency, editor or journalist to disclose the source of any news or information published by that newspaper or received or reported by that news agency, editor or journalist.

Thus, while it would wrong to say that journalist have no statutory sanction to protect their sources, the same is only in the context of an inquiry by the Press Council of India

Law Commission Report

There was the 93^rd Law Commission Report titled “Disclosure Of Sources Of Information By Mass Media” released in September 1983 headed by Justice KK Mathew. The commission had recommended insertion of an exception in the Indian Evidence Act:

“No court shall require a person to disclose the source of information contained in a publication for which he is responsible, where such information has been obtained by him on the express agreement or implied understanding that the source will be kept confidential”.

Explanation.–In this section»-

(a) ‘publication’ means any speech, writing, broadcast or other communication in whatever form, which is addressed to the public at large or any section of the public.

(b) “source” means the person from whom, or the means through which, the information was obtained”.

 The Commissions also opined that the matter should be left elastic, by vesting in the court a discretion in the matter. It said that the court, in each case, can balance the need to protect confidentiality of the source of the information against the interest of justice (general consideration), demands of national security, prevention of disorder and crime

International Courts

In Goodwin v. United Kingdom [Judgement of March 27, 1996, 22 EHRR 123] the European Court of Human Rights ruled by a vote of eleven to seven that an attempt to force a journalist to reveal his source for a news story violated Article 105 of the European Convention on Human Rights. The case was about a journalist who wanted to publish a story based on confidential information he received concerning the financial difficulties of a particular company. The information was derived from the company’s confidential financial plan, and was presumably stolen.

In December 1994, the 4th European Ministerial Conference on Mass Media Policy of the Council of Europe adopted a Resolution on Journalistic Freedoms and Human Rights. 8 Principle 3(d) provides that the protection of the confidentiality of journalists’ sources enables journalists to contribute to the maintenance and development of genuine democracy.

In 1993, European Parliament (EP) passed The Resolution of the European Parliament on Confidentiality of Journalists’ Sources and the Right of Civil Servants to Disclose Information which stated that it believed in “the right of confidentiality for journalists’ sources is an important factor in improving and increasing the supply of information to the public, and that this right in practice also increases the transparency of decision-making procedure, strengthening the democratization of the Community institutions and governmental bodies in the member States, and is inextricably linked to the freedom of information and the freedom of the press in the broadest sense lending substance to the fundamental right to freedom of expression, as defined in Article 10 of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms.”

Conclusion

While, the Supreme Court had made a general observation in terms of protecting journalists’ sources, it was with regards to the alleged snooping in their phones that could have compromised their sources and put them in a place of danger. As the revelation of sources in this case would indicate that the sources were being revealed to government agencies, as had been alleged.

The ruling of the Delhi Metropolitan Magistrate suggesting that CBI enforce the revealing of the source’s identity was in the interest of carrying out an investigation where a document relating to  an ongoing investigation was leaked. There may appear to be two sides to this. Any investigative journalist in criminal matters will have an insider source, who if revealed, will be reluctant to assist the journalist to retrieve information and if penalized, it will be a deterrent and no “official sources” will ever speak to any journalist fearing reprimand from investigating agencies. While the issue needs determination on a case-to-case basis, in the interest of justice, and needs to be interpreted judicially, any broad diktat could seriously harm freedom of expression that includes the right to investigative and independent journalism.

In a democracy like India, the freedom of press has been secured and safeguarded by courts over and over again for years. Since the Press is considered to be the fourth pillar of democracy, to allow them to freely do their jobs is sacrosanct to maintain this freedom. Hence, it is important to read into the Supreme Court’s observations in the Pegasus matter.

However, taking into consideration the law Commission’ report which left it to the discretion of the court to consider this on a case-to-case basis, the ball is again in the “court”. While the report did recommend insertion of an exception to journalists in the Indian Evidence Act, the recommendation about giving courts discretion is contrary to the former recommendation.

Weighing in on the Supreme Court’s order, the Law Commission Report and the example of International Court (which dealt with a private company’s leaked information), it may be concluded that while journalists need immunity from revealing their sources for the most part,  on occasion, if the interest of justice in a particular instant arises, the decision may be up for judicial intervention in the absence of any specific statutory exception in this regard.

An absolute protection of journalist’s sources could also become detrimental to criminal justice. In the instance of leakage of copy of charge sheet in the Delhi violence case 2020, the Additional Sessions Judge Amitabh Rawat, Karkardooma addressed the “disturbing trend” of reporting exact contents of charge sheet calling it unjustified. The court said that if the charge sheet is reproduced as it is, even before the court has taken cognisance the question of leakage obviously arises. Before the court, the counsel appearing for Pinjra Tod members Devangana Kalita and Natasha Narwal submitted that TV channels and newspapers were quoting the charge sheet in their reports. He cited a Times Now report where sections of the supplementary charge sheet were quoted and he added that the police were leaking the same to the media.

The Delhi Court, in the same matter, had pulled up Delhi Police was not being able to identify who leaked the supplementary charge sheet to the media. However, the news channel  that showcased the copy of chargesheet were not brought into the dock, thus leaving the jurisprudence in regards to revealing journalistic sources has been left in a vacuum, in this case particularly.

Related:

Tenets of free and fair trial are sacrosanct: Delhi court on media leak of chargesheet in violence case

Allegations are already established, says Delhi HC in media leak case

No criminality in journalist, Mohd Zubair’s tweet says Delhi Police to High Court

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The Delhi Union of Journalists (DUJ) has strongly condemned the Himachal Pradesh government’s diktat that all journalists wishing to cover the Pradhan Mantri’s visit to Bilaspur, should submit a character certificate to the CID. The DUJ has also welcomed the last minute move by the government to withdraw the ill conceived order, the statement added. 

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There can be no higher law in journalism than, to tell the truth, and to shame the devil.
___ Walter Lippman

A lot of ink, an infinite number of film reels, and a frantic churn of news stories bristling with violent tones have fixated the Muslims as a stereotyped homogeneity. There is a cottage industry of authors who keep the midnight oil burning to ensure that the flashlights on bad Muslims keep beaming. These are churned out by a well-oiled Islamophobia machine with financial backers, think-tanks, and misinformation experts who are constantly manipulating the already flawed image of what a Muslim is, of what Islam is. 

The majority of Muslims are moderate, peaceful people who have been affected by terrorism and violence more than non-Muslims. But the media is not interested in this positive angle. It has constructed its stereotype of a Muslim as a terrorist and uses selective stories to reinforce this stereotype.

There is a strong voice of moderates from within Muslim ranks that can be properly channelised by the media to give a rounded assessment of Islamic issues. It is equally true that the media has tried to hype acts of Islamic impropriety by indulging in hyperbole.

Sadly, journalism is still failing to perform its fundamental role by simply rehashing tired old narratives of “radical Islam” or a “fight within Islam.” The truth is much more convoluted than that and the entire world has a direct role in creating the dangerous reality that so many Muslims have to live with every single day.

The media shows remarkable consistency in employing an arsenal of semantic games, key phrases, convenient omissions, and moral relativism to portray such violence as a product of Islam. As Jim Morrison observes, “Whoever controls the media, controls the mind.”

Several times headlines are sensational or distorted, and reporting is often deeply racist. This impacts directly the lives of Muslims. Some of the stories that are thus emerging are painful and disturbing. 

It is much easier for the media to reduce the complex debate on various issues confronting modern Muslims to a series of clichés, slogans and sound bites, rather than examining root causes. Because instant and credible information have to be given, it becomes necessary to resort to guesswork, rumours and suppositions to fill in the voids, and none of them will ever be rectified. They will stay on in readers’ memory.

News value also depends on the “social weight” of the message, i.e. the extent to which the media user thinks the message concerns him or her personally. To increase the “social weight” of messages, the reporter is inclined to present the deviant behaviour of Muslims in such a way that it appears to have many consequences for every single person in society.

This could explain why the media makes eager and uncritical use of negative statements about the groups concerned when these are expressed by politicians and other important persons in society.

The negative news presentation about Muslims in the media is also indubitably caused by the fact that reporters generally lack the specific knowledge, which is needed to cover the groups concerned. All of us from the most powerful columnists to the tiniest bloggers, need to be careful about what we put out into the cloud. Words matter most in journalism. Our keyboards have become so powerful now, that our slightest action of irresponsibility can blow us up into a crisis. Many mainstream journalists have struggled to find consistent language to use when covering events linked to violence involving Muslim issues. There are a variety of reasons and the problem cannot be resolved overnight. All these require proper training and mentoring. We need seasoned mentors for journalists covering such sensitive issues.  

The use of the term “Jihadists” is complicated by the fact that the spiritual term “jihad” has been redefined in many ways by thinkers within different streams of religion. There are also journalists and experts who focus on parts of Islam that can be viewed, together, as a political “ideology” as opposed to part of a system that is both theological and there are those who won’t hesitate to provide an ideological hue to so many moral ideas.

It’s difficult to write about divisions inside Islam, without having some understanding of who is who, and what is what. If the goal is to separate the beliefs and actions of “moderate” or “mainstream” Muslims from those of the radicals–clearly a task that journalists should attempt–then you need to have some language to use in public media for people on both sides of these conflicts.

Religion is often portrayed simply as a social or political construct, although for millions of people, religion is a daily practice and the very real framework of understanding that connects human lives to a spiritual reality. Their faith is the prism through which they view the world, and their religious communities are their central environments. It is difficult to overstate the importance of faith in the lives of so many.

Most people around the world would prefer to live in peace than in conflict. Yet, often the only religious voices on the front page are those speaking messages of hatred or violence, especially in stories about conflict or social tension.  

M Scanlon’s now-classic essay, “The Difficulty of Tolerance,” offers materials for an attractive and  affirmative answer.“Tolerance is valuable for its own sake because of the attitude it allows us to bear towards our fellow citizens, an attitude of fraternity and solidarity that is deeper than the intractable disagreements that divide us. Tolerance makes it possible to view all our fellow citizens as equally entitled to participate in defining and determining the shape of society.”

Intolerant individuals, Scanlon argues, don’t view their fellow citizens as so equally entitled. Intolerant individuals think they have a special status as compared to others and do not view others as full members of society.

In an ideal world, journalism is a profession of incredible integrity and journalists are among the most dexterous and skilled people in the world. We have all benefited from the work of persistent journalists who put life, limb, family and even sanity on the line in their pursuit of truth. There is no sane, decent, and democratic polity possible without journalists who challenge power, relentlessly pursue and disseminate the truth and always find the next story to tell.

The press once seemed to have a conscience, thanks to history’s painful social conflicts and questions of war and peace. The world, however, has changed, and many of us may be in the time warp of old values. Like all institutions, the media has also suffered in terms of its reputation.

From terrorists to dictators, provocative literature to fabricated threats, Muslim identity is marred by almost every imaginable negative stereotype and menacing trope. Amidst these, the images of good Muslims, in every medium, are few and far between. 

Good storylines of Muslim characters are woefully few.  Often, there is a consistent stream of sloppy reporting, bias, or wilful sensationalism about Muslims. The way stories are deformed to fit a formula about Muslims–and the difficulties in uprooting these fictions once they’ve been laid out  – can be seen all across the media. Corrections and retractions by the media are extremely rare and do not find any prominent space. The clarification is published in inn a vague corner and a very weak font is used. The information hardly gets the attention of any reader and the original news becomes permanently etched in public memory. Several countries have Press Councils for adjudicating such issues but most of them are government nominees who do not have the freedom they need to tame such errant media.

It is much easier for the media to limit the complex debate on various issues confronting Muslims to a series of clichés, slogans and sound bites, rather than examining root causes. It is easier still to champion the most extreme and prejudiced critics of Islam while ignoring the voices of mainstream Muslim scholars, academics and activists. There is a strong voice of moderates from within the Muslim ranks that could be channelised properly by the media to give a rounded assessment of Islamic issues. This could help in shaping a proper perspective on the whole issue.

Sadly, journalism is still failing to perform its fundamental role by simply rehashing tired old narratives of “radical Islam” or a “fight within Islam.” The truth is much more convoluted than that and the entire world has a direct role in creating the dangerous reality that so many Muslims have to live with every single day.

The media shows remarkable consistency in employing an arsenal of semantic games, key phrases, convenient omissions, and moral relativism to portray such violence as a product of Islam. As Jim Morrison observes, “Whoever controls the media, controls the mind.”

Several times headlines are sensational or distorted and reporting is often deeply racist. This impacts directly the lives of Muslims. Some of the stories that are thus emerging are painful and disturbing.  Much coverage of Muslims in the news outlets has a negative slant. We’ve seen how some papers get their news about Muslims wrong and how often they reuse the same stereotypes. True, like many others, Muslims also have a share of negative elements.  But the story has to be fair and reflective and shouldn’t generalise about all Muslims and feed into a broader far-right narrative.  As CP Scott, the founder-editor of The Guardian emphasised, “Comment is free but facts are sacred.”

Religion has been simply reduced to a social or political construct, although for millions of people, it is a daily practice and the very framework for understanding that connects their lives to a spiritual reality. Their faith is the prism through which they view the world, and their religious communities are their central environments.

The reality is that religious leaders and dialogue practitioners may not be equipped to properly understand and analyse news sources or reach out meaningfully to the media. They may not be aware of the process of the newsroom agenda setting and may not recognise that journalists do not usually set the news agenda. Religious leaders and dialogue practitioners could benefit from training on how to represent themselves better to the press and online.

They should not allow their messages of peace and reconciliation or the fact they represent the majority of people of faith, to be overshadowed by media-savvy religious voices that deal in conflict and hatred. There is the possibility that in the heat of debate objectivity gets diluted.

Faith leaders and journalists must both appreciate and understand each other’s constraints.

For their part, Muslim leaders can play a very meaningful role in sensitizing the media to the various complexities that Islamic issues have. Broader dialogue can help in a nuanced understanding of the whole issue.

Islamic organizations need to be professional in their public relations, something that few of them are. They need to have staff that can properly interact with non-Muslim media organizations and presents them with a proper and convincing Muslim perspective on a range of issues. The intention should be to interact cordially with the “mainstream” media and thereby help articulate Muslim voices to counter anti-Muslim stereotypes and disinformation. There is a desperate need for Muslim media groups to be research-oriented. They, along with other Muslim community organizations, could commission projects on various social issues relating to the community and articles generated out of such research projects can be sent to various newspapers. Muslim community organizations must seriously consider establishing research centres that specialise in social science research, something that is woefully lacking today. This research can then be made more publicly accessible through the mass media.

What is therefore needed to cool the flames of hatred is to bring faith leaders and the media onto a common platform that would provide constructive interactions thereby injecting objectivity into the media’s assessment of Islam and Muslims.

To quote Iqbal:

Haq Se Agar Gharz Hai To Zaiba Hai Kya Ye Baat

Islam Ka Muhasiba, Yourap Se Darguzar!

(And if your goal is truth, is this the right road, Europe’s faults all glossed, and all Islam’s held to so strict an audit?)

-Sir Muhammad Iqbal

*The writer is a scholar with PhDs in English and Economics

Related:

Hashtags of Hate flood social media as Islamophobia grows

We Indian Muslims need no sermons from the Al-Qaeda

The post A fair media can defang intolerance appeared first on SabrangIndia.

A case has been registered against Samajwadi Party leader Saiyada Khatoon who won from the Domariyaganj assembly seat by a margin of 771 votes, polling  85,098 votes against Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate Raghavendra Pratap Singh’s 84,327 votes. She had lost to Singh in 2017 by a mere 171 votes and has now come back stronger.

But, even before she takes the oath as a legislator, she and 250 other unidentified people have been accused of allegedly raising “Pakistan Zindabad Islam Zindabad” slogans in Siddharthnagar district on Friday.

Circle Officer Ajay Kumar Srivastava told the media that the police took cognisance of the viral video and registered a case “against 250 unidentified people including SP MLA Saiyada Khatoon from Domariyaganj.” However, according to a report in Zeenews, the circle officer said that the police are still “verifying the viral video and identifying the people who raised slogans”. According to a report in Hindustan, the case included violation of section 144.

However Khatoon, told the media that she only reached her office late at night after receiving the election certificate and “was not at the spot” when the alleged slogans were raised. She added that this was an effort to defame her using an “edited video”. She added, “It is my priority to maintain peace and harmony in the region.”

In February, she had posted on her (as yet unverified) social media handle that “Abhimanyu Singh, in-charge of police station, Shivanagar Didai district, Siddharthnagar, is pressurizing the public to campaign and vote in favor of BJP by threatening to implicate them in the case. Even after the report of the Regional Inspector, no action has been taken against them so far.”

थाना शिवानगर डिड़ई जनपद सिद्धार्थनगर के थाना प्रभारी अभिमन्यु सिंह जनता मुकदमे में फसाने की धमकी दे कर बीजेपी के पक्ष में प्रचार एवं वोट करने का दबाव बना रहे हैं। क्षेत्रीय प्रवेक्षक के रिपोर्ट के बाद भी अभी तक उन पर कोई कार्यवाही नहीं हुई है ।@dgpup @ECISVEEP @Uppolice

— Saiyada Khatoon (@saiyada_khatoon) February 27, 2022

शुक्रिया अदा करती हूं, डुमरियागंज की जनता का,
यह चुनाव जनता लड़ रही थी, में उनके साथ खड़ी थी बस, और हम लोग चुनाव जीते भी,अब हम सब मिलकर डुमरियागंज का विकास करेगें, भले ही हमारी सरकार न बनी हो, लेकिन जो एक विधायक का काम होता है, में पूरी जिम्मेदारी के साथ करूंगी @saiyada_khatoon pic.twitter.com/4Ycm9mRu7K

— Ahmad Chaudhary (@AhmadCh89279054) March 10, 2022

The case registered on Friday was based on a complaint made by SSI Ramakant Saroj of Domariaganj police on Thursday night, stated news reports. The complaint alleged that “slogans were being raised at the SP office on Thursday night” and that it was in breach of Section 144 which was imposed in the area. On the basis of SSI’s complaint, the police registered a case under sections 143, 153 (A), 188 and 505 (2) against the unidentified SP supporters, and Syeda Khatoon on Friday.

However, it is not yet known if any case has been registered against the now ousted MLA of Domariyaganj Raghavendra Pratap Singh of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) who had claimed that if he were elected again, Muslims will wear tilaks. He is a well known serial hate offender in Uttar Pradesh.

यूपी/सिद्धार्थनगर-abuse content

“चुनाव जीतने के बाद उतरवा देंगे लाउडस्पीकर”

डुमरियागंज विधानसभा से भाजपा प्रत्याशी (वर्तमान विधायक) राघवेंद्र प्रताप सिंह का विवादित वीडियो वायरल

In the video, BJP MLAs are seen making abusive language and threats against the Muslim community pic.twitter.com/wJLDBaQY5L

— Rajan Chaudhary (@EditorRajan) February 15, 2022

The relentless hate mongering of BJP MLA Raghvendra Pratap Singh has led CJP to file another complaint against him before the State Election Commission (SEC) of Uttar Pradesh for delivering another speech during his election campaign. The earlier instance of hate speech was also brought to the attention of the SEC via a complaint dated February 15. Within a week of this complaint, CJP came across another video of Singh, where he was again seen addressing a crowd of voters during one of his campaigns and can be heard saying, “Any Hindu who doesn’t vote for me has Miyan (slang for Muslims) blood in his veins. He’s a traitor. He is a b***ard son of Jaichand. He’s a h****khor son of his father…I am giving warning this time…traitors of Hindu religion will be destroyed.”

“Even after this warning of mine, if they don’t understand, I will show you what Raghvendra Singh can do. If you humiliate me I will bear it but if you betray the Hindu society, I will destroy you,” he added.

Poetic justice. Lost to Saiyada Khatoon of the Samajwadi Party. pic.twitter.com/L3exNxgyrs

— Piyush Rai (@Benarasiyaa) March 10, 2022

Related:

UP Assembly Elections: Serial hate offender Raghvendra Pratap Singh gets the boot in Domariyaganj!
UP Assembly Elections: Farmers dealt a mighty blow to the BJP in some constituencies
Why is Mayawati blaming Muslims and media for BSP’s electoral debacle in UP? 
Another MCC violation, no action yet against Raghvendra Singh of BJP
Hate Offender: Raghvendra Pratap Singh
CJP flags BJP MLA from UP Mayankeshwar Singh’s communal hate speech to SEC

The post Case registered against Saiyada Khatoon, newly elected MLA of Domariyaganj appeared first on SabrangIndia.

As soon as polling concluded for the last phase of the Assembly Elections in Uttar Pradesh on March 7, 2022, news media channels started releasing their Exit Poll results. But the truth often gets lost when big media networks, that rely heavily on advertising revenue and political patronage, engage in any high decibel news telecast about electoral predictions.

In a proto-fascist State, more often than not, the entire exercise of conducting an Exit Poll and revealing its results is reduced to just a charade by media houses who have proven time and again that they are happy to be the regime’s lapdogs. Their Exit Polls appear to be nothing more than a campaign to spread misinformation or gaslight viewers, just so the TRPs remain high and the unofficial bosses remain happy.

But sometimes, even news channels that have greater credibility owing to a proven track record of balanced and nuanced news coverage, also end up making genuine mistakes when it comes to predictions and calculations. But only a few have the courage and dignity to apologise. Bihar election predictions being a prime example.

With this in mind, let us take a deep dive into what different Exit Polls are saying about the outcome of the Assembly Elections in Goa, Manipur, Punjab, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh. Some of the predictions are so divergent, that it makes one wonder if the polls are even referring to the same state!

While the veracity of all exit polls cannot be rejected outright, perhaps a closer look is mandated to ascertain ground realities. What can also not be ignored is the silence factor – when the respondent voter does not divulge that they have voted against the incumbent regime, out of fear of retaliation. It is noteworthy, that some political pundits have referred to it, but often to suggest that even the pro-regime voters are not divulging their vote. The reason for this though, is not clear.

Before the elections the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was in power in Goa, Manipur, Uttaranchal and Uttar Pradesh, while the Indian National Congress (INC) is the incumbent government in Punjab.

Goa (40 Assembly seats)

In Goa, the India Today – Axis My India Exit Poll predicts a hung Assembly. It gives the BJP 14-18 seats, and the INC 15-20 seats, with Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) likely to get 2-5 seats and the remaining 0-4 being lapped up by independents and others.

The ABP News – C Voter Exit Poll also makes similar predictions, saying no single party will get a majority. It gives the BJP 13-17 seats, the INC 12-16 seats and says that the Aam Admi Party (AAP) might end up getting 4-8 seats.

India TV meanwhile appears to be hedging its bets with two exit polls. While the India TV CNX exit poll says that the BJP will retain Goa with 16-22 seats, the channel’s second exit poll with Ground Zero Research predicts a comfortable majority for the Congress with 20-25 seats!

According to the Times Now-Veto Exit Poll, Congress might emerge as the single largest party with 16 seats, followed by BJP with 14. It gives AAP 4 seats and 6 to others.

Meanwhile, a lesser known Deshbandhu Exit Poll gives the BJP 7-11 seats, while it predicts that the INC could bag 21-25 emerging as the largest party, leaving others with 6-10 seats.

Interestingly the MGP, that is backed by the Trinamool Congress (TMC) is being touted by many to play kingmaker! Does this mean that Mamata Banerjee is all set to take the mantle of “Remote Control” from the Late Balasaheb Thackeray?

Manipur (60 Assembly seats)

When it comes to Manipur, almost all polls predict a victory for the BJP. The India Today – Axis My India Exit Poll says that the BJP is likely to get 33-43 seats, with the INC, National People’s Party (NPP) and the Naga People’s Front (NPF) all likely to get between 4-8 seats. Yet others could get anywhere between 0-7 seats.

India TV – Ground Zero Exit Poll too predicts a “thumping victory” for the BJP saying it will win 26-31 seats, while the INC will get 12-16 seats. The Zee – Designboxed survey also gives the BJP an edge with 32-38 seats, giving the INC 12-17 seats, while the NPP is expected to win 2-4 seats, leaving 2-5 seats for the others.

The ABP News – C Voter Exit Poll, however, gives the BJP 23-27 seats, thus suggesting it will be the single largest party, but will not have a sweeping victory. It gives 12-16 seats to the INC, 10-14 seats to the NPP and 3-7 seats to the NPF. These leaves independents and others with 2-6 seats.                                                                                                                                              

Similarly, the Jan Ki Baat survey’s estimates also appear to be more conservative with the BJP is likely to win 23-28 seats, the Congress 10-14, NPP 7-8 and others 12-18. The CNX survey’s predictions are only marginally higher for the BJP giving it 26-31 seats. It predicts 12-17 for the Congress, 6-10 for the NPP and 7-12 for others.

But here too, Deshbandhu Exit Poll’s predictions differ from others. It gives the BJP 23-27 seats, and the INC 21-25 seats, leaving others with 10-14 seats. This suggests a closer contest between the BJP and INC, as opposed to how other exit polls have treated BJP’s victory here as a foregone conclusion.

Punjab (117 Assembly seats)

Almost all exit polls have predicted a clean sweep for the AAP in Punjab. The India Today – Axis My India Exit Poll says AAP could win as many as 76-90 seats, and predicted that the INC would get 19-31 seats.

The ABP News – C Voter Exit Poll gave AAP 51-61 seats, and gave the INC 22-28, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) 20-26 seats and the BJP a measly 7-13 seats.

However, according to India TV – Ground Zero Research Exit Poll, it is the INC that will emerge as the single largest party with 49-59 seats, with AAP trailing as the second best with 27-37 seats. It gave SAD+BSP 20-30 seats, the BJP 2-6 seats, leaving 1-3 seats for others.

Meanwhile, the Deshbandhu Exit Poll predicts the at INC will win 62-68 seats, leaving the BJP biting the dust with 2-8 seats. It gives the SAD 22-28 and AAP 17-23, while others could get 0-4 seats.

Uttarakhand (70 Assembly seats)

There aren’t many surprises for Uttarakhand either. The north Indian state that has seen a revolving door of Chief ministers and was the site of a deeply communal Dharm Sansad, could go either way if two of the main exit polls are to be believed.

According to India Today – Axis My India Exit Poll, BJP could get 36-46 seats, with INC trailing at a close second with 20-30 seats. While Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) could get 2-4 seats, others could end up with 2-5 seats.

According to the ABP – C Voter Exit Poll, it is the INC that will have an edge over the BJP. This poll says the INC could get as many as 32-38 seats, while BJP could get 26-32 seats. Debutante AAP could get 0-2 seats, while the BSP and others could get 3-7 seats.

Interestingly, according to India TV-Ground Zero Research Exit Poll, the INC could get a comfortable majority with 37-41 seats, restricting the BJP to 25-29. It predicts that the AAP may not even be able to open its account, while others may win 2-4 seats.

It is noteworthy that the Deshbandhu Exit Poll predicts a victory for the INC with 40-46 seats and the BJP trailing with 22-28! AAP and others could get 0-2 each.

Uttar Pradesh (403 Assembly seats)

Because of the mammoth size of the UP Assembly, the half-way mark is 202. This is where the poll predictions become interesting, with some polls predicting thumping majority and landslide victories for the BJP, and others pointing towards a slimmer margin of victory with SP making considerable gains. Yet others are predicting a victory for the Samajwadi Party (SP).

India Today – Axis My India Exit Poll predicts a “landslide victory” for the BJP, saying it could win 288-326 seats, while the SP could win 71-101 seats. It also predicts that the BSP is unlikely to win seats in the double-digits.               

Meanwhile, the ABP – C Voter Exit Poll predicts that the BJP will retain power, but with a reduced majority. It gives the BJP 228-244 seats, while it predicts that SP will win 132-148 seats. It also predicts that Mayawati’s BSP will bag as many as 13-21 seats while the INC could get 4-8 seats.

India TV once again chose to go with two different predictions. According to the India TV-Ground Zero Research Exit Poll, BJP may win 180-220 seats, while Samajwadi Party may bag 168-208 seats. The BSP could get 2-12, Congress 2-8 and others could get 2-4 seats. Meanwhile, according to India TV-CNX Exit Poll, the BJP is set to retain power with 240-250 seats, a higher number of seats as compared to its own Ground Zero Research Exit Poll. The India TV-CNX Exit Poll also gives the SP 140-150 seats, and says BSP may bag 6-12 seats, Congress 2-4 and others may get 0-2 seats.

At the other end of the spectrum is the Deshbandhu UP Exit Poll, which predicts that the BJP will get 134-150 seats, while the SP will get 228-244 seats, taking them past the halfway mark! It gives the BSP 10-24 seats, and the INC 1-9 seats.

The final results will be declared after counting on March 10, 2022.

Related:

Assembly polls: 40,395 model code of conduct violations lodged with EC
Assembly Elections: Large turnout among women voters

The post Assembly Election Exit Polls: Will media pundits be proved wrong again? appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Media coverage regarding the hijab row decreased during the weekend following the Karnataka High Court’s February 25, 2022 move to reserve order on pleas against the restrictions on hijab in educational institutions. While this relieves worries of repeat incidents like the one where a media personnel chased a young girl, the reduction in reportage also takes away the attention from protesting young girl students.

Nine Muslim girl students approached the Court when the controversy around hijabs began to spread across the state around early February. Right-wings elements in different universities and later schools demanded that students remove the hijab because “it does not belong in the classroom”. The High Court on its part went through 11 hearings on the matter and passed an interim order that banned religious clothing in colleges that followed CDC guidelines.

Finally on Friday, it asked both sides to wrap up their arguments and reserved its order. With this, the media turned its attention elsewhere. but the protests in the state continued.

Shivmogga

There was palpable tension in the district until recently after the alleged murder of a Bajrang Dal member Harsha. His supporters alleged a communal angle in the matter and the ensuing chaos forced the administrations to close educational institutions until the situation was back in control. However, when schools reopened on February 28, hijab-wearing students were once again barred entry inside college premises.

According to local reports, the DVS college girl students observed a march protest and demanded a meeting with authorities. The continued ban persists at a time when students in the state are soon to face their final year exams.

After a week of curfew- schools and colleges were allowed to function by #Shivamogga dist authorities.Students were seen protesting outside DVS college demanding to be allowed inside class. A meeting of college authorities is going on with students and Dysp. #Karnatakahijabrow pic.twitter.com/a70ad3ufYH

— Imran Khan (@KeypadGuerilla) February 28, 2022

Mangalore

On the same day as the HC hearing, Mangalore’s Bharat PU college had to declare a holiday when girl students protested outside the premises. The girls demanded that they be allowed entry into the college until after the court judgement. College officials tried to negotiate with the girls but closed the college when the student group refused to listen.

Udupi

On February 24, Udupi’s MGM college cited HC orders and kept girls from entering the campus. In response, the hijab-wearing girls protested outside the area but were told to leave because Section 144 was in place.

#Hijabi students blocked from attending classes by principal at MGM college, #Kundapur, #Udupi citing High court orders.Students had a standoff with the authorities. They were told since section 144 is in place. They cannot assemble at the campus.
#Karnataka #KarnatakaHijabRow pic.twitter.com/laHb5MSvKO

— Imran Khan (@KeypadGuerilla) February 24, 2022

This was the same district where the controversy regarding the hijab first began. On February 3, Udupi’s Kundarpura witnessed sit-in protests by Muslim girl students outside their pre-University college to assert their right to wear a hijab on campus. Male students joined in to show their solidarity. The girls even brought copies of school regulations and showed that there was no rule banning headscarves inside classes. Still, their education was hindered so close to finals.

Yadgir

Around the same time that the State’s Minority Welfare department confirmed a ban on religious headscarves in government-run schools, another girl student in Yadgir’s PU college was denied entry in the educational institution. Her brother protested against the decision pointing out that the college in question did not follow CDC guidelines and thus could not cite the HC order. Still the peacefully advocating siblings were denied entry by the Principal and present police authorities.

Vijayapura

On February 16, hijab-wearing students had a stand-off with a college principal in Vijayapura. Despite there being a college WhatsApp group, the students were not informed about the new ban on hijab. They had their exams on the same day.

#Hijab wearing students is having a standoff with college principal in #Vijayapura #Karnataka over allowing them inside classes. They argue no message came in college #WhatsApp group about no hijab.Principal says- he is following HC order.They have exams 2day #KarnatakaHijabRow pic.twitter.com/Q8DRhvQRWG

— Imran Khan (@KeypadGuerilla) February 16, 2022

Mudigere

Even before the school department imposed a ban as per the HC order, a school in Mudigere denied entry to a group of girl students wearing hijab. The students originally were allowed to wear scarves inside premises. However, according to reports, the police department told the principal to keep the students outside the school gate.

Kodagu

In Kodagu’s NelliHudikeri, a school student chose to walk out of her school campus when arbitrarily told to remove her head scarf.

This list does not contain but mentions an incident on February 15 in Shivamogga where a young girl was chased by a local reporter. The girl was visibly alarmed but this fact was ignored as the reporter continued to take photos and videos of the girl who could not enter her school because she was wearing a hijab.

Outside Karnataka

Many other states also reported instances of a hijab-ban although the matters were resolved shortly and kept from flaring up. Madhya Pradesh was the most recent when a mix of various right-wing Hindutva groups assembled outside an autonomous post graduate government college and harassed two hijab-wearing students on February 14. Other areas to report rogue instances were Uttar Pradesh, currently going through elections, Pondicherry and Delhi.

While the media loses its focus on these protests, the girls continue their dissent and lose more time they could have spent studying.

On February 22, activist, educationist and journalist Teesta Setalvad and social scientist and activist Dr. Muniza Khan talked about the implications and origins of the whole controversy. Setalvad said the HC order affected the fundamental rights of education of Muslim girls. The order physically bans hijab-wearing girls from going to school. She questioned the attitude of the state and that of the High Court when there was growing tension in the state. Citing a Hindustan Times analysis report, she said that 61 percent of Indian women cover their head, out of which Muslim women were 89 percent, Sikh women were 86 percent and Hindus are about 59 percent.

Similarly, Dr. Khan said that the current controversy was pushed to an international level to polarise votes in Assembly elections. She said the ripple effect can be seen in UP, especially in Jaunpur, Azamgarh, Gazipur, and Varanasi. As a resident of UP, who is aware of ground realities, she accused the ruling regime of taking this issue to divert people’s attention from major issues of concern such as employment, inflation etc.

Now, by taking away the attention from these girls, the right-wing has allegedly created another controversy only to leave it wholly unresolved as state elections draw to a close.

Related:

Hijab Ban: Identity politics or body policing?
No Hijab in class: Will Puducherry be able to nip the controversy in the bud?
School’s duty to ensure minor girls are not shackled by religious practices: CDC in Hijab ban case
First they came for the hijab, then they came for the turban; what is next on the list?

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