An open letter on Wednesday called on Indian media outlets to stop running false propaganda and misinformation campaigns about the recent mass uprising in Bangladesh and apologise to the brave Bangladeshi protesters.
The letter, signed by 86 people, including academics, read that most Indian media 鈥� backed mainly by the Indian ruling party or government 鈥� has falsely depicted the mass uprising as a conspiracy orchestrated by the opposition parties, Islamic militants, and Western powers.
It mentioned that the 2024 uprising was fueled by the brutal murders by security forces between July 15 and 18, which then continued until August 5, when Sheikh Hasina fled to India, and general frustration due to high inflation, unemployment, and corruption.
However, Indian media outlets like Republic TV, Zee News, News 18 India, NDTV, and many others have ignored the death and devastation caused by armed forces and the then-ruling party鈥檚 student wing, Bangladesh Chhatra League, including the killing of over 300 students, 32 of whom were children, and 10,000 arrests, it read.聽聽
After Hasina resigned and fled to India, vandalism occurred, but it was perpetrated mainly by the mobs, not led by student protesters, in fact, the student leaders have repeatedly called to protect all public and private property, particularly the places of worship of religious minorities, the letter said, adding that Indian media ignored these developments.聽
The signatories included economist Anu Muhammad, writer Rahnuma Ahmed, Jahangirnagar University professor Manosh Chowdhury聽聽 photojournalist Shahidul Alam, writer and critic Salimullah Khan, theorist and writer Azfar Hussain and singer Arup Rahee.
