Punjab Police debunks false link between Gen Z protests and Pakistan

Punjab Police clarified that edited videos falsely suggested a connection between protesters and a terror module.

Once again, the false narrative of the Modi government, BJP, and RSS supporters has been exposed. The activities of the BJP's IT cell have been revealed once more. The BJP IT cell and RSS supporters have mastered the art of editing videos to portray someone as a terrorist or to defame someone. The Punjab Police clarified on Thursday that there is no connection between the people protesting at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi and the Pakistan ISI-supported terror module recently busted by the Amritsar Commissionerate.

According to a report by Hindustan Times, this clarification came after edited video clips of the Amritsar Police Commissioner's August 4 press conference were circulated on social media. It is alleged that these videos created a false impression that the protesters were linked to the terror module.

According to a police spokesperson, the original press conference only mentioned that some of the arrested accused had visited Jantar Mantar, conducted reconnaissance of the area, and planned to target protesters with petrol bombs. The police stated that nowhere in the press conference was it said that the accused participated in the protest or that the protesters had any connection with the terror module.

According to the police,

some social media handles uploaded edited videos of the press conference. The background visuals were altered, certain parts of the original video were selectively cut, and captions were added to present a false narrative of a connection between the arrested individuals and the protesters.

The Punjab Police stated that the audio of the press conference and the factual information provided in it were not changed, but selective editing and the details provided with the video distorted the original context. This could lead viewers to draw incorrect conclusions about the role of the Jantar Mantar protesters. Terming the dissemination of these edited videos as a serious matter, the police spokesperson said that appropriate legal action is being initiated under the provisions of the Information Technology Act against those responsible for spreading misleading content.

It is painful when someone is labeled a traitor and branded a terrorist in their own country. Farha Naaz, a resident of Uttar Pradesh and a participant in the Jantar Mantar protest, said two days ago, “We were protesting peacefully at Jantar Mantar when these policemen brutally beat us. The police targeted us based on our names. They beat me just because I am Muslim and my name is Farha Naaz.”

Farha Naaz said,

First, they beat me, then put me in a bus and kept me there for three hours. After that, they asked my name. I said 'Farha Naaz', and they said, 'A separate list will be made for them because they are traitors.'

She further said, “My only point is that if you continue to do this, we will not back down. We will always stand for our rights and our country.” Another female protester, Muskan Sharma, said, “I have only one question - why did the police hit me when I was walking peacefully? Why did the RAF officers lathi-charge me?

And when there is a clear rule that one cannot be hit above the thigh and no male officer can hit a woman, why did a male RAF officer try to hit my private parts with a lathi?

Muskan said,

Secondly, since I mentioned that my name is Muskan, I also want to say that my surname is Sharma. I am saying this because nowadays everyone assumes that I am Muslim, and because of this, I have to endure more abuse and harassment.

This does not say anything about me, but it says a lot about the narrative being created in this country at this time. If someone speaks against the government, they must be Muslim. And as soon as you label someone Muslim, they automatically become a 'traitor'.

A fake narrative was run to defame the students, to the extent that senior RSS leader Atul Limaye called the students anti-national, and former BJP MP Ramesh Bidhuri used communal language, using derogatory terms like puncture repairers. Several major media channels also fueled such baseless reports.

Now, after this statement from the Punjab Police, it has become clear that not only were these statements baseless, but they were also being run with a specific agenda.