Complaint against BBC over riot coverage, Delhi Police yet to file FIR

The western media has come under immense scrutiny for their reportage of the riots in the national capital. After Wall Street Journal and Al Jazeera, a Hyderabad-based organisation Legal Rights Protection Forum has filed a complaint with Delhi Police against the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). While Delhi Police has taken cognisance of the complaint, Cyber Cell is yet to file a First Information Report (FIR) against the media outlet.

Defamatory propaganda

The organisation has levelled some serious allegations against the BBC. According to the complaint, BBC has indulged in defamatory propaganda through an article published on its portal. The article that has come under scrutiny was published on March 3, 2020 — “The BBC has uncovered evidence that police in the Indian capital Delhi acted alongside Hindu rioters". The complainant has alleged that these are false allegations that have been levelled against Delhi Police.

Speaking to Republic TV, Kalyan Kumar, general secretary, Legal Rights Protection Forum, said, “These are biased reports that have been filed by BBC. They were trying to say that Delhi Police acted in a biased manner by siding with the Hindu rioters."

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What the complaint says

“We strongly believe that because of the sacrifice made by Delhi Police many lives were saved. And it is a known fact that a police constable named Sri Ratan Lal had to sacrifice his life while performing his duty during this riots, which is most unfortunate incident and irreparable loss to the department,” read the complaint, accessed by Republic TV.

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The complaint further reads, “Instead of appealing for peace and religious harmony, the BBC India News Media has been constantly provoking a section of people and promoting hatred and violence among them against the responsible police department.”

The organisation has sought strict action against the media outlet. However, the Delhi Police is yet to act against any western media. ”Such defamatory propaganda against Indian Government is nothing but a conspiracy to defame the image of India at the international level,” said Kumar.

(Image credit: AP)

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