Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind has moved the Supreme Court claiming that the media has communalised the Nizamuddin Markaz event, where about 2,500 individuals congregated in the midst of the Coronavirus outbreak.
The plea further states that this demonization of the community has led to serious “threat to life and liberty of Muslims”, and has thus led to the violation of their “Right to life under Article 21.”
The petition says that most of the reports presented the facts in a twisted manner, using phrases like “Corona Jihad”, “Corona Terrorism” or “Islamic Resurrection”.
The petitioner organisation contends that if there is any delay in ordering a directive to stop communal reporting regarding the Markaz issue, it would only “promote ill-will, enmity and hatred towards the Muslim community in India.”
The petition lists “several social media posts” which “wrongly showed Muslims doing deliberate acts to spread COVID-19.” The plea has also given links to fact check reports that have gone on to prove that such reports were malicious and “were old unrelated videos.”
Further, the plea notes that while such reports demonising the Muslim community have flooded social media, platforms like Twitter have taken no action in accordance with their standard practice and guidelines.
One of the fake social media posts highlighted in the plea was a mass Muslim religious gathering where an act of “mass sneezing” was reported. However, the petition has given links to fact check reports highlighting how it was a Sufi practice which was falsely reported as an effort to spread the Coronavirus pandemic.
The plea states that the following questions of law arise for the Court’s consideration:
- Whether giving a communal angle while covering the Nizamuddin Markaz event has violated Article 21 of the Muslim community?
- Whether such reporting giving a communal flavour is in violation to the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act, 1995?
- Whether such reporting demonizing the entire Muslim community is contrary to the principles of secularism?
- Whether the government failed in its duty in failing to prohibit such transmission of such programmes where a communal angle was given to the entire incident in accordance with Section 19 & 20 of the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act, 1995 and also in accordance with clause 8 of the Policy guidelines for uplinking of Television Channels?
- Whether government failed to stop fake news and communal statements from being spread on social media websites?
Terming it as “grossly irresponsible behaviour” on part of the media, the plea states that such reports have created divisions in the society. It states,
“Spreading of such communally charged news and yellow journalism has the effect of pitting different communities against each other and can also have the effect of creating social unrest in the country.”
Plea filed by Jamiat-Ulema-i-Hind
The petition also states that such fake reports were in violation of the Supreme Court’s order of March 31, by which the media was directed to publish “official version of reports” dealing with the COVID-19 outbreak. It is stated,
“Media was directed to maintain a strong sense of responsibility and ensure that unverified news capable of causing panic would not be disseminated.”
The petition has prayed for strict action against “sections of media spreading bigotry and communal hatred in relation to the Nizamuddin Markaz issue”. It goes on to highlight that the recent Delhi riots was one of the “worst communal riots in the Union territory’s history” and that communalising the Tablighi Jamaat meet puts the “law and order situation of the entire state” at risk.
