On Monday, the Delhi police detained Mohammed Zubair, a fact-checker and co-founder of Alt-News, for allegedly injuring religious sensibilities through a tweet.
After a Twitter user tagged Delhi police in one of Mohammed Zubair’s posts from 2018 about the Hindu god Hanuman, he was detained. Let’s examine the specifics.
What was the tweet about?
Zubair poked fun at a hotel that changed its name from “Honeymoon Hotel” to “Hanuman Hotel” in a tweet dated March 24, 2018. “Before 2014: Honeymoon Hotel, After 2014: Hanuman Hotel.” he captioned that picture.
According to reports, this Tweet incited the public, which ultimately resulted in Zubair’s detention. “Linking our God Hanuman Ji with a honeymoon is a clear insult to Hindus because he is a brahmachari,” a Twitter user who had tagged the Delhi police wrote.
“Kindly take action against this guy”, the user further added while requesting the Delhi Police.
Zubair’s Twitter controversy history
Mohammed Zubair is known for tweeting contentious statements. He had periodically made fun of several people, accusing them of inciting hatred.
An FIR was lodged against him in Uttar Pradesh after he had denounced Hindu Saint Yati Narisnghanand as a “hatemonger.”
After he posted a picture of a girl having her face covered and her grandfather in 2020, the NCPCR also filed an FIR against him in accordance with the POCSO legislation.
Ongoing conflict with the government
The conflict between Mohammed Zubair and the government is nothing new. He has publicly criticized the ideologies and policies of the government.
Additionally, he tweeted the divisive comments made by BJP spokeswoman Nupur Sharma about the Prophet Muhammad that caused widespread outrage.
After numerous of his tweets were deleted in the nation as a result of complaints from the administration, Zubair also questioned the government.
Allegations against Zubair
The journalist has been charged by the Delhi police with violating IPC sections 295A (Deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious sensibilities of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs) and 153 (Wantonly giving provocation with intent to incite unrest).
The Delhi Police in a statement said “When Delhi Police was alerted by a Twitter handle that Mohd Zubair had earlier made an objectionable tweet & his followers/social media entities had amplified & created a series of debates/hate-mongering, he was examined & his role was found objectionable,”.
Zubair was described by police as “evasive” and as not cooperating with the inquiry or providing the necessary technical equipment.
Politics about the arrest
Mohammed Zubair’s arrest has sparked a political debate. The opposition is constantly criticizing the central government, calling this action a vendetta against the journalist, while the BJP is applauding the action against Zubair.
Along with lawmakers, several media and journalist organizations, such as the Editors Guild, have denounced the arrest of the co-founder of Alt News.
