On October 13, what was meant to be a peaceful celebration turned into a nightmare in Uttar Pradesh’s Bahraich. Hindus were joyously participating in a Maa Durga visarjan procession, accompanied by a band and DJ, when their path took them near a mosque. Islamists in the area demanded the music be switched off, but the procession continued, refusing to bow to their demands. What followed was nothing short of horrific.
Without warning, stones rained down on the procession from all sides. Amidst the chaos, a young Hindu man, Ram Gopal Mishra, only 22 years old, decided to stand up against the assault. He climbed atop a house from where the stones were being thrown. In an act of defiance, and cheered on by the crowd, Mishra removed a green flag that was already installed there and unfurled a saffron one, chanting “Jai Maa Durga” and “Jai Hanuman” with pride. But this courageous act of protest came at a terrible price.
Within moments, Mishra was dragged into the house he had climbed. The door slammed shut behind him, and in the horrifying moments that followed, the sound of gunfire echoed through the area. As many as 15-20 bullets were fired at him. Ram Gopal Mishra is no more.
Instead of outrage for this heinous crime, what followed was a coordinated effort by the secular and leftist lobby to twist the narrative. The flagbearer of this brigade was none other than the so-called fact-checker Mohammad Zubair, who has built a career on pushing biased and misleading stories. His narrative, shared widely, conveniently ignored the fact that Islamists had attacked a peaceful procession. Instead, it focused on portraying Mishra as the aggressor.
Zubair shared a video of Mishra’s final moments on X, writing, “A video of Gopal Mishra in the Bahraich violence has surfaced. He is seen forcefully removing a Green flag and replacing it with a saffron flag. The mob can be seen shouting slogans and encouraging him to remove the flag. Gopal was shot dead later.”
A video of Gopal Mishra in the Bahraich violence has surfaced. He is seen forcefully removing a Green flag and replacing it with a saffron flag. The mob can be seen shouting slogans and encouraging him to remove the flag. Gopal was shot dead later. pic.twitter.com/hh8iqKP9yk
— Mohammed Zubair (@zoo_bear) October 14, 2024
Zubair was not alone in this attempt to shift the narrative. Wasim Akram Tyagi, another ‘journalist’, echoed similar sentiments. He shared the video of Mishra removing the green flag and accused the crowd of provoking the attack by vandalising nearby shops. Tyagi’s version conveniently left out the detail that stones had been thrown first.
बहराइच के महसी में हुए बवाल में जान गंवाने वाले युवक का वीडियो सामने आया है। इस वीडियो में दिख रहा है कि एक युवक टीन के सहारे छत पर चढ़कर हरे झंडे को फाड़ रहा है, इस दौरान छत लगी रैलिंग भी गिर जाती है, युवक उसी छत पर भगवा झंडा फहराता नज़र आता है। नीचे खड़ी भीड़ दुकानों में… pic.twitter.com/1CilH0CHtn
— Wasim Akram Tyagi (@WasimAkramTyagi) October 14, 2024
Then came Aasif Mujtaba, the founder of the Miles2Smiles Foundation, who played the victim card for the Islamists involved in the violence. Mujtaba, named a co-conspirator by Sharjeel Imam in earlier cases, turned the tables by demonising Hindus who were peacefully protesting and demanding justice for Mishra’s brutal murder.
The law & order situation in Uttar Pradesh is abating every day. After a Hindu youth who was part of violent mob that attacked Muslim houses, was shot dead in #Bahraich ,situation is becoming tense. pic.twitter.com/dMjSUQZMdS
— Aasif Mujtaba (@MujtabaAasif) October 14, 2024
Shyam Meera Singh, a YouTuber known for his divisive opinions, went further, blaming Mishra himself for his own death. In a chilling statement, he claimed, “Gopal Mishra himself was responsible for his death because he ‘trampled on and humiliated the dignity of others with his shoes.’”
गोपाल मिश्रा की हत्या में बहुत से लोग दोषी हैं। एक ख़ुद गोपाल मिश्रा जिसने दूसरों की इज्जत को जूते से कुचला, अपमानित किया। दूसरे वे जिन्होंने अभी तक जितने गोपाल मिश्रा हुए उन्हें सजा नहीं दीं। तीसरे ये भीड़। चौथे इस भीड़ को संरक्षण देने वाले लोग। अगर ये चीजें ना होती तो कुछ ना…
— Shyam Meera Singh (@ShyamMeeraSingh) October 14, 2024
Adding to this toxic mix was The Wire journalist, Alishan Jaffri, who tweeted, “As soon as he was finished demonstrating his bravado in front of a mob, Gopal Mishra was reportedly shot dead. His family is shattered now. The police and administration should have stopped this escalation.”
As soon as he was finished demonstrating his bravado in front of a mob, Gopal Mishra was reportedly shot dead. His family is shattered now. The police and administration should have stopped this escalation. pic.twitter.com/X53thLe2Jm
— Alishan Jafri (@alishan_jafri) October 14, 2024
BJP MLA Shalabh Mani Tripathi took to social media to counter these false narratives, sharing a list of journalists who were pushing these biased versions of the incident. He wrote, “Just read the names of the journalists sending news from Bahraich, you will understand how unbiased and true the news is, a group of YouTubers is engaged separately, the whole system is engaged in saving the rioters and spreading lies.”
बहराइच से ख़बरें भेज रहे पत्रकारों के नाम भर पढ लीजिये,समझ आ जाएगा कि ख़बरें कितनी निष्पक्ष व सच्ची हैं,यूट्यूबरों की जमात अलग से जुटी है,पूरा सिस्टम ही भिड़ा है दंगाइयों को बचाने में,झूठ फैलाने में !! pic.twitter.com/5JcFGYdfzn
— Dr. Shalabh Mani Tripathi (@shalabhmani) October 14, 2024
The list included prominent names like Faraz from K News, Tariq from Swadesh News, and reporters from India TV, NDTV, and ABP, among others. These journalists, instead of reporting the full truth, had conveniently omitted the fact that stones were hurled at a peaceful Hindu procession, leading to the violence.
Meanwhile, Islamists attempted to trend #AllEyesOnBahraich on X, spreading AI-generated images showing Hindus chasing Muslims with swords. These false visuals were part of a broader effort to discredit the truth and shield those responsible for Mishra’s death.
A Hindu man has died in Bahraich. And guess what the Islamists are trying to trend? A picture of armed Bhagwa-clad men marching with hashtag Islamophobia in India and All eyes on Bahraich
They can justify anything pic.twitter.com/y34OWkUPcz
— Swati Goel Sharma (@swati_gs) October 14, 2024
According to an eyewitness, Gopal was dragged into the house of one Abdul Hamid, from where the stone-pelting had begun. Multiple bullet wounds were found on Gopal’s body. Yet, this critical detail was missing from the narratives peddled by secularists and so-called fact-checkers.
An FIR has been registered in the case, and the accused include Abdul Hamid, Sarfaraz, Faheem, Sahir, Maroof, Nankau, and others. UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has assured that no one involved in this brutal killing will be spared.
This tragic case of Ram Gopal Mishra stands as a painful reminder of how crimes against Hindus are downplayed, while those who stand against such injustices are demonised. The question remains: How long will this pattern of violence, distortion, and propaganda continue?
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