The screenshot of the fake post shared by CPI(M) leader, Subhashini Ali, sparking controversy (Image: Twitter)
On July 23, a former Member of Parliament and the Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader, Subhashini Ali, shared misleading information about a minor Rashtriya Swayamsewaks. She accused the minor of having been involved in the Manipur sexual assault. However, she faced significant backlash on social media and by the evening she apologised for sharing fake news. Notably, taking cognizance of the matter, the RSS filed a case against Ali.
Notably, a video amidst continued violence in the northeastern state of Manipur was shared widely on social media, where two women were paraded naked. The incident is said to have happened on May 4. The police swung into action and arrested the accused involved in the barbaric act.
Many similar videos and incidents have surfaced on the internet over the past few days, two of them being from Bengal, one from Begusarai and others. Not a single liberal and so-called intellectual came forward to condemn cases from these states. This shows it is all done to target a party and set a narrative against them, keeping the upcoming Loksabha and different Vidhansabha elections in mind.
In the same desperation, the former MP Ali shared a picture of a young boy in their teens, dressed as RSS swayamsevak with BJP state vice president and swayamsevak Chidananda Singh. While sharing their picture Ali did not bother blurring the minor’s face and captioned it as “They are the Manipur accused. Recognise them by their clothes”.
Following the allegations, the BJP leader, Singh, wrote a letter to the Director General of Police (DGP), Manipur, demanding action against Ali and many others who have been sharing the misinformation. He stated that the minor in the picture with him is his son, Sacchidananda Singh.
Singh stated that the picture has been taken from his Facebook account and is false. The picture has been posted by a number of people in different groups and on Samagrasasamskarika Vedi. The individuals include Shankarkondaparthi, Nuhman Kannat, Ajees Muhammad, and many others from south India and other parts of the country.
The RSS has also initiated action and filed a case of defamation and implicating a minor falsely under the Juvenile Justice Act.
Later, Ali shared an apology on Twitter, accepting that the information she shared was false. She wrote on Twitter, “This is incorrect. Sincere apologies”.
It is noteworthy that this is not the first time that left-wing leaders and communists have pedalled lies against the RSS. In the past, there have been numerous such instances.
In April 2023, a two-page letter was in circulation under RSS letterhead listing ways to trap non-Hindu girls for conversion. Later, the head of media relations of the RSS, Sunil Ambekar, clarified the matter and called it ‘completely fake’.
In July 2023, two separate FIRs were registered against Congress leader Digvijay Singh for posting a fake and misleading post against the second Sarsanghchalak of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), Madhav Sadashivrao Golwalkar.
Singh posted a photoshopped image of Madhav Sadashivrao Golwalkar, also known as Guruji, to incite people against the RSS. The post intended to create hatred and enmity among Dalits-backwards, Muslims-Hindus. The controversial post by Singh has hurt the sentiments of the entire Hindu community and the RSS. It has been alleged that the primary objective of such a controversial post by Singh was to create social unrest.
In June 2023, FIRs were registered against media organisations and social media users and groups, namely, News Nasha (Web Portal), Encounter (Web Portal), Janvichar Samvad (Facebook Group), Bhavika Kapoor and Anuj Yadav (Twitter Handle) and Piyush Ahir (Facebook Profile) for spreading fake news against Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. The media outlets claimed that the office bearers of RSS were running a spa centre and wrong activities were going on there. Based on this video, fake stories were being posted by some Facebook groups or media sites. However, the fact is that this video is not related to any volunteer of Sangh.
In February 2022, RSS filed a complaint against three prominent newspapers for spreading fake news about the RSS at Hajratganj police station, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. The media houses claimed that RSS would construct its second headquarters on 100 acres of land in Ayodhya, covering an area 100 times larger than Nagpur.
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