An editor of RSS mouthpiece on Thursday claimed that a Hindu temple had been demolished in a ‘Muslim dominated’ area of Delhi. However, the Delhi Police later termed his claim ‘fake’ but have refused to take any criminal action against Hitesh Shankar for spreading fake news with an intention to disturb communal harmony.
Shankar, whose Twitter bio describes the man as Editor, Panchjanya weekly, shared a photo of a demolished structure as he wrote in Hindi, “In Delhi’s Muslim dominated Noor Nagar, a temple was demolished and now evidence is being erased. Those responsible for the demolition must be made to reconstruct the temple at the same location.”
Shankar also tagged Home Minister Amit Shah and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in his tweet.
However, the Delhi Police later tweeted terming Shankar’s claim as fake. “Local Police visited the spot to verify the contents of the tweet. The property belongs to a member of the Hindu Community who himself was dismantling/ clearing the built up area adjacent to the temple in his own property. No harm to the temple has been caused and it is intact,” a tweet from the official Twitter handle of DCP South East Delhi read.
Local Police visited the spot to verify the contents of the tweet. The property belongs to a member of the Hindu Community who himself was dismantling/ clearing the built up area adjacent to the temple in his own property. No harm to the temple has been caused and it is intact. https://t.co/DyowGvgi33
— DCP South East Delhi (@DCPSEastDelhi) September 23, 2021
Shankar had mischievously posted the fake news from his verified Twitter handle at 1.14 PM on Thursday. It was clear from his tweet that he was hell-bent on creating communal tension in India’s national capital by laying emphasis on the ‘Muslim-dominated’ area. The clarification from the Delhi Police came at 7.49 PM. Shankar posted another tweet at 10.18 PM blaming others for disturbing communal harmony.
The Delhi Police, which reports to the BJP government at the Centre, has refused to take any criminal action against Shankar. Meanwhile, the fake news peddler’s inflammatory tweet continues to remain LIVE on the microblogging site. Twitter has not taken any action against the man.