Reporters Without Borders (RSF) calls on the Indian authorities to ban a group of pro-government Hindu nationalists who have launched an online campaign against “biased” journalists. RSF also urges the authorities to guarantee the physical and professional survival of journalists threatened by these militants.
This online militia unveiled its existence on Twitter last week, calling itself “India Against Biased Media” and using the hashtag #IABM to recruit volunteers. Its programme – which, at the very least, can be described as radical – is to rid India of “biased or fake” news and to target those responsible.
One of its founders, Vipul Saxena, identified the group’s targets as journalists responsible for “biased content resulting in hurting religious sentiments of people aiming to disturb social harmony.”
In a highly explicit tweet, he added: “If some media kingpin thinks #IABM is shooting the Messenger. Yes we are shooting the messenger but people know we are shooting the ‘One’ who spread lies and fears so deserve this treatment only.”
IABM claims that it is apolitical but a quick look at Saxena’s Twitter profile leaves little doubt about its affinities. His profile displays a large photo of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Saxena boasts of having Modi among his Twitter followers.
The group says it wants to purge all “anti-national” and “anti-government” content without distinction. IABM’s “vigilantes” subject targeted journalists to online harassment and malicious phone calls, report them to their employers and accuse them of sedition in complaints filed with courts around the country.
Deafening silence
“We call on the Indian government to ban this group, which is openly inciting murder and whose verbal violence against journalists poses a serious threat to their physical safety,” said Daniel Bastard, the head of RSF’s Asia-Pacific desk.
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