The Wire whitewashes conversion attempt of Hindus, shields Muslim accused

Case ID : 90a059a | Location : Hamirpur, Uttar Pradesh, India | Date of Incident : Thu, 16 January, 2025
Case ID : 90a059a
location Hamirpur, Uttar Pradesh, India
date 16 January, 2025
The Wire whitewashes conversion attempt of Hindus, shields Muslim accused
Hate speech against Hindus
Anti Hindu subversion and prejudice
Anti-Hindu Fake News or Downplaying

Case Summary

Far-left propaganda portal The Wire published an article that downplayed an incident involving the arrest of five Muslim men in Uttar Pradesh for attempting to convert a Dalit Hindu family to Islam under the pretext of curing an illness. The men—Nooruddin, Meraj Hasan, Khalif, Irfan, and Mohammad Hanif—were arrested in Hamirpur district based on a complaint filed by Urmila Verma, a Dalit woman. She reported being coerced into religious conversion through promises of healing and financial inducements. Urmila, suffering from a long-term illness, claimed Nooruddin introduced her to a shrine-based ritual as a cure. Nooruddin and his associates convinced her family to construct a mazar at their home and performed a prayer ceremony (Urs) while discussing conversion. The incident came to light after Hindu advocacy groups, including Bajrang Dal, amplified Urmila's complaints, leading to police action under the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act, 2021. Hinduphobia Tracker covered this case of forced conversion of the Hindu-Dalit family by the Muslim accused. The Wire framed the arrests as driven by Bajrang Dal's intervention, portraying the Hindu advocacy group as the aggressor. The headline, “Uttar Pradesh Police Arrest 5 Muslim Men After Bajrang Dal Alleges ‘Conversion’ Plan,” suggested that the arrests were politically motivated rather than addressing the criminal charges filed by the victim. Arfa Khanum Sherwani, a senior editor at The Wire, amplified the narrative by claiming that Muslims were being criminalized simply for their identity, dismissing the victim’s plight and the legal context of the case. The Wire’s coverage focused on branding the accused as victims, deflecting attention from the allegations of coercion and exploitation faced by the Dalit family. This incident highlighted The Wire’s pattern of undermining cases involving religious conversions while downplaying the grievances of Hindu victims.

Why it is Hate Crime ?

This case has been added to the hate tracker under the prime category- Hate speech against Hindus and within this, the sub-category selected is- Anti Hindu subversion and prejudice. Under this, one tertiary category namely, 'Anti-Hindu fake news or downplaying', has also been selected. Hate speech is defined as any speech, gesture, conduct, writing, or display that is prejudicial against a specific individual and/or group of people, which is leading to or may lead to violence, prejudicial action or hate against that individual and/or group. Media plays a specific and overarching reach in perpetuating prejudicial attitudes towards a community owing to unfair, untrue coverage and/or misrepresentation/misinterpretation, selective coverage and/or omission of facts of/pertaining to issues affecting a specific religious group. This type of bias can dehumanise the victim group, making it easier for others to justify harmful actions against them, which aligns with the objectives of hate speech laws aimed at preventing such harm. It is often observed that the media takes a prejudicial stand against the Hindu community driven by their need to shield the aggressor community which happens to be a numeric minority, however, is the one perpetrating violence against Hindus. For example, the media is often quick to contextualise religiously motivated crimes against Hindus, omit or misrepresent facts that point towards religiously motivated hate crimes, justify and/or downplay religiously motivated hate crimes or simply present fake news to stereotype Hindus. Such media bias leads to the denial of persecution and is often used to dehumanise Hindus, leading to justification for violence against them. For example, the media covered several fake allegations of Hindus targeting Muslims and forcing them to chant Jai Shree Ram. Most of these cases were proved false and fabricated after police investigation. These fake news reports were subsequently never retracted or clarified. Such fake news led to the justification of violence and dehumanisation of Hindus based on the argument that since Hindus targeted Muslims and forced them to chant Jai Shree Ram, the dehumanisation of Hindus and violence against them was par for the course and merely a retaliation. Such media bias leads to prejudicial portrayal of Hindus and offers a justification for violence against them and therefore, is considered hate speech under this category. Here, the UP police arrested 5 Muslim men involved in the forced conversion of a Dalit Hindu family. The arrests were made based on the victim's complaint and followed investigations. However, , far-left propaganda outlet The Wire published a piece that sought to downplay the incident. The article framed the arrests as a politically motivated action driven by Bajrang Dal's intervention rather than focusing on the victim’s allegations or the legal violations involved. By emphasizing the role of the Hindu advocacy group and portraying the accused as victims, The Wire shifted the narrative away from the Dalit family's exploitation. The Wire's senior editor Arfa Khanum Sherwani further amplified this narrative, suggesting that the arrests reflected the criminalisation of Muslims based on their identity, thereby dismissing the Hindu victim's suffering. This selective reporting demonstrates a pattern of prejudice and subversion, where the genuine struggles of Hindu victims are downplayed, and the actions of those seeking justice are vilified. Such biased narratives contribute to anti-Hindu sentiment by deflecting attention from the exploitation Hindus face in coercive conversion cases,. Since this systematic dismissal is indicative of an underlying bias that perpetuates discrimination against Hindus and exemplifies how the motivations behind the denial or downplaying of religiously motivated persecution are rooted in a profound animosity toward Hindus and their faith, this case has been added to the tracker.

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