The BBC carried an article claiming Muslims were being disproportionately targeted with their homes being bulldozed.
The article appears to cleverly use the word “Muslim”, but fails to mention that many were Rohingya refugees that had illegally settled in the area. Only temporary illegal structures had been razed.
Some were Muslim, but there is no evidence they were targeted for being Muslim. The BBC article portrayed a Hindu versus Muslim narrative.
The Times of India reported that a high-ranking Muslim minister said the event was being used to convert people’s own prejudiced agenda of “India phobia” into “Islamophobia”. Another example of the BBC providing insufficient coverage to varying perspectives of Muslim leaders.
It was worth noting that Hindu temples have also been demolished which triggered protests.
In 2021 the BBC covered a barely known “Hindu priest” as they termed it. Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati is someone few would have known but was spotlighted on the BBC India homepage. Whilst any hate speech is condemnable, it appears obscure Hindu individuals making speeches are given big platforms by the BBC.
In comparison, in 2021, an Indian Muslim political leader, Akbaruddin Owaisi, who has a much bigger following made extremely dangerous remarks, reiterating a 15-minute violent threat against Hindus.
This repeat threat was not covered on the BBC, nor are hate speeches against Hindus in Pakistan. For example, a well-known Pakistani Moulana made a speech saying Hindus will not be allowed to celebrate Holi in Sindh.
Pew Research found 98% of India’s Muslims say they are free to practice their religion in India, with a very small minority of Indian Muslims answering “not at all free”.
This research undermines a lot of BBC articles and the politicised narratives of anti-India activists. Actual Muslims in India report that they experience very low levels of discrimination.
In one BBC article about a Bollywood star’s comeback, the piece goes off topic, saying “activists say the frequency of hate crimes against Muslims and other minorities has increased”.
But the BBC does not source which activists said this, what their data gathering method was and what the actual numbers were, in comparison to the Indian population which exceeds 1 billion.
References for this article can be found in the full report.
