The farmer’s protest took an unexpected turn after some participants of the Tractor Rally went haywire. Among other anticipated measures to ‘control the chaos’, the internet was cut in and around Delhi quite immediately. And the same has not been restored yet in many parts of Delhi.
How Did It All Start?
The Indian judiciary and its overall mindset take a very precarious stance on the Internet rights of the people. But that is not the same in other developed countries, particularly the United States of America.
As a result, when CNN decided to bring this issue up, it did not fail to catch the attention of some of the most important international figures, including Great Thunberg, Rihanna, Mia Khalifa, and Jay Sean.
It then started a major Twitter spat between Indians, with each side vigorously bashing the other. On the one hand, some users pointed out the gravity of the situation while simultaneously expressing their disappointment over an almost complete silence maintained by Bollywood.
On the other hand, many users called out these Twitterati, arguing that this was an internal matter and made personal attacks on these big public names.
An Unexpected Response From Bollywood
Within a few hours, the Ministry Of External Affairs came out with a tweet. It reassured the Indian public about the efficacy of the farm laws and asked them to beware of any international propaganda.
Bollywood and its big stars, who usually like to button their lips on such subjects, reposted this tweet with almost similar quotes. Tags like #IndiaTogether and #IndiaAgainstPropaganda started trending on Twitter. They were, then, joined by the cricketers and many of the other big Indian names.
Those who have been critical of the farm laws and the entire charade for almost half a year now condemned this act and called it propaganda in itself. And this included many of the actors like Swara Bhasker and Taapsee Pannu.
Also Read: AIB Deletes Meme On Modi Because Hero Worship By Bhakts Gone Too Far?
What Was Taapsee Pannu’s Tweet About?
Her tweet was a direct attack on the government and judiciary system of the country. She called out MEA’s tweet. She also made a passing remark on Munawar Faruqui and the baseless case for which he is still in jail.
He was arrested for allegedly making offensive comments on Hindu deities during a comedy show in Indore. When no evidence was found for the same, the court rejected his plea for bail on the grounds of the possibility of more “incriminating material”.
It was not long before our very own Twitter warrior decided to join the ruckus, abusing her online. But another interesting thing happened. People started retweeting her tweet using Charlie Hebdo as the hashtag.
So What Is Charlie Hebdo?
It is a French satirical weekly magazine known for its controversial and topical cartoons, reports, polemics, and jokes. The magazine is believed to have a radical leftist ideological stand. Its sentiments against racism, inequality, jingoism, and religious oppression are equally unequivocal.
However, its journey has not been any easy. It has been a part of three terrorist attacks— 2011, 2015, and 2020. Among many other things, one topic that has invoked the maximum controversy and all the three major attacks was that of Prophet Muhammad.
They republished the 2015 controversial caricatures ahead of the trial of the convicted perpetrators. And that did not bode well with many of the extremists. As a result, on 25th September 2020, the old office of Charlie Hebdo was ambushed, and two people were critically injured during the assault.
Why Is Charlie Hebdo Trending Again?
Now we as Indians love to deflect the responsibility and find fault in others. Be it the Capitol Hill or the Charlie Hebdo Shooting, India has never shunned away from making any scathing criticisms on such scarring incidents.
So when Taapsee Pannu said that it is our feeble value system that needs rectification and not the joke or the tweet, people started tagging Charlie Hebdo on it.
But as responsible Indians, we have to understand the irony of the situation here. The very Indians who are so sure about India’s sovereignty and democracy are the ones weakening it. It is under such circumstances that we must raise our voices before we experience our own Charlie Hebdo attack.
Image Credits: Google Images
Sources: Twitter, BBC, The Guardian.com
Find The Blogger: @soumyaseema
The post is tagged under: farmer’s protest, Tractor Rally, the internet was cut in and around Delhi, Indian judiciary, not been restored, Indian judiciary, very precarious stance on the Internet rights of the people, the United States of America, CNN, Great Thunberg, Rihanna, Mia Khalifa, Jay Sean, Twitter spat between Indians, the gravity of the situation, disappointment over an almost complete silence maintained by Bollywood, internal matter, the Ministry Of External Affairs, international propaganda, Bollywood, #IndiaTogether and #IndiaAgainstPropaganda, cricketers and, Swara Bhasker, Taapsee Pannu, Munawar Faruqui, Kangana Ranaut, Charlie Hebdo, controversial and topical cartoons, reports, polemics, jokes, radical leftist ideological stand, racism, inequality, jingoism, religious oppression, three terrorist attacks— 2011, 2015, and 2020, Prophet Muhammad, republished the 2015 controversial caricatures, 25th September 2020, Capitol Hill or the Charlie Hebdo Shooting, scarring incidents, feeble value system that needs rectification, India’s sovereignty and democracy
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