From its avowed mission of undertaking dhulai (laundering) of Indian media and journalists to washing the dirty linen of Islamists (in a nice way), Newslaundry has proved that in its brand of journalism facts don’t matter – not even worth the detergent.
It’s a well-known fact that Islamists and a foreign-funded entity managed by a senior journalist-author have launched a joint ‘Free Sidhique Kappan’ media campaign nationally, and internationally. Sources say that the entity that runs a media outlet had received Rs 10 crore from the UK. The police suspect the money was sent for the campaign. The journalist-author and several other individuals and businessmen who use hawala channels to transfer money and fund the campaign are on the UP Police watch-list.
Like other media outlets and journalists, Newslaundry has been roped into the campaign by the ‘Free Kappan’ campaigners.
Feast of vultures
According to a senior journalist, those behind the campaign aim at four outcomes: 1) Make a hero out of Sidhique Kappan like the other terror accused Abdul Nazar Madani languishing in a Bengaluru jail; 2) If Kappan gets bail, other Popular Front of India (PFI) terrorists who were arrested along with Kappan could also get bail easily; 3) Sources say ‘Free Kappan’ campaign has been a lucrative proposition for many (journalists included), as fund collection drives are on within and outside the country; 4) Target/damage the reputation and silence journalists and individuals who write or speak against Popular Front. (G Sreedathan, Founder and Managing Director of Indus Scrolls, and also Associate Editor of Organiser, has been chosen deliberately. With more than two decades of experience, Sreedathan has worked or contributed articles to almost all the major national dailies in the country before starting Indus Scrolls. After the Newslaundry story, Sreedathan received several hate messages and tweets from Islamists and PFI-sponsored organizations. Earlier, another journalist in a Malayalam daily was targeted in a similar fashion. Police protection has been given to the journalist after specific intelligence inputs indicated that there is a threat to his life from Islamists. If Kappan has no Islamist links, why Islamists are up in arms against some journalists who they think might have helped UP Police?)
UP Police vouchsafe that the arrest of Kappan and the other two had helped the intelligence agencies unravel the terror network in South India. Badruddin (Kappan’s roommate) and Khan provided crucial inputs that led to a series of arrests and raids across South India
To build a pro-Kappan narrative, Akanksha Kumar of Newslaundry has fabricated many a fact. The claim that Kappan had filed a defamation case against Sreedathan or Indus Scrolls for that matter is a lie. Through this, she wants to drive home the message that Sreedathan holds some personal grudge against Kappan. On this Sreedathan says: “Till this date, I have not received any defamation notice from anyone, leave alone Kappan. I don’t know Kappan personally. Indus Scrolls published the report on Kappan as his acts were anti-national. There were several questions about him and his activities under the cover of journalism. Since Kumar has access to the Islamist circles, I would request her to share a copy of the defamation notice with me. But more importantly, if Kumar is correct, the question is who has funded him, a freelance journalist with a measly salary, to engage a high-profile lawyer to file a defamation suit?”
Kerala Union of Working Journalists (KUWJ), which is fighting Kappan’s case doesn’t have the financial muscle to engage highly paid lawyers. There are differences within KUWJ over taking up the case of a terror accused. The management of a leading Malayalam daily is mighty upset with one of its staff members getting too much involved in the Kappan case. “But the question is, who is funding the cash-starved KUWJ to fight the case,” asks a senior journalist who doesn’t want to be named.
Finding that his quotes were doctored to suit her agenda, Sreedathan asked Newslaundry journalist Akansha to change them. To prevent her from playing mischief again, he wrote down the statement and sent it to her, which she did not use
In October 2020, UP STF officials contacted Sreedathan to seek details of a report published in the Indus Scrolls portal. They told him that when they forensically examined Kappan’s laptop, they found a draft of a defamation notice against Sreedathan and Indus Scrolls. Kappan was arrested before he could file the defamation suit against Sreedathan. “They asked me to help them with the report Indus Scrolls had published against Kappan. Since the reports appeared in our Malayalam section, I gave a translated version of the report. That’s it,” said Sreedathan.
In her report, Akanksha tries to give an impression that the UP Police had relied only on two less-than-500-word reports published by Indus Scrolls to prepare a 5,000-page charge sheet. Sreedathan says: “I don’t think she is too naïve to believe that the UP Police had built their case on the basis of our two small Malayalam reports. They have highly efficient officers and investigators and they know their job. By publishing such half-baked and fake stories aimed at building a narrative, Akanksha is helping the Islamist cause. If the voluminous charge sheet was built on flimsy facts, why did the courts not give Kappan bail? Let them fight it in courts, not in media.” (She should at least have read the trial court order denying bail to Kappan.)
Another problem with Akanksha’s report is that she has sought to build a narrative solely on the basis of the defense lawyer’s claims. “What is a defense lawyer expected to do? Will he say that his client is a terrorist? It is like preparing a theft report on the sole basis of the thief’s statements. This is ridiculous,” says Sreedathan.
If their cases are weak, some clever lawyers indulge in planting stories in the media in a bid to influence judges. “There is a pattern in all the pro-Kappan reportage in the media recently. Egged on by the defense lawyers, journalists cull out small portions of the charge sheet which they think is a weak point and blow them out of proportion to vilify police and build a public opinion. Courts of law are the best place to test the merit of the charge sheet,” he said.
As regards Akanksha’s claim that Sreedathan is a witness in the case, he said he was not aware.
Kappan’s PFI links
Indus Scrolls published the story on Kappan’s links with PFI in March 2020. Kappan was detained along with PFI activists in October 2020, initially for creating ruckus at a toll plaza. Later, a police investigation found that Kappan had strong PFI links. The arrest vindicates our report.
To the benefit of Akanksha and others who peddle the fake narrative that Kappan has no PFI links should go through the charge sheet. According to the charge sheet, Kappan visited several countries, including Georgia and South Africa while he was working with Thejas, the mouthpiece of PFI. “It is debatable whether a small newspaper like Thejas can afford to send a reporter for months together in foreign trips,” said a journalist who does not want to be named.
The charge sheet has conclusively established Kappan’s links with PFI, like his participation in a secret workshop that deliberated on creating communal disturbances and riots. According to the police, his Hathras trip was also planned with a similar aim. The two terrorists arrested by UP’s Anti-Terrorist Squad, Anshad Badruddin and Firoz Khan, also participated in the above-mentioned workshop along with Kappan, according to a senior police official. According to the official, the two were arrested with explosives while traveling by train. “One of them is a martial arts trainer and the other is a bomb-making expert. Kappan’s lawyers will have to explain his relations with these men,” said a police official. The official further claimed that Kappan’s arrest helped the police unravel sources of terror funding and arrest fugitive SIMI terrorist Danish Abdullah, who was involved in several bomb blasts across the country. Kappan was in regular touch with dreaded terrorist Abdullah who is still in the custody of NIA, the police official quoted above said.
Reporters like Akanksha should read the chargesheet before giving ‘reliability certificates’ to journalists and accusing them of spreading false information
The charge sheet also mentions that Kappan’s “services” were praised in the organization report presented at the PFI annual conference. Reporters like Akansha should read these portions of the charge sheet before giving ‘reliability certificates’ to journalists and accusing them of spreading false information.
Kappan used to stay in the office of the National Confederation of Human Rights Organisations (NCHRO), an NGO associated with PFI. Kappan’s wife claimed that he was staying in the NCHRO office, as he had a meager salary. PFI martial arts trainer Anshad Badruddin was sharing the room with Kappan in NCHRO. This clearly indicates the link between PFI and NCHRO. Besides, NCHRO has intervened, organized protests, and provided legal assistance to PFI activists when they were arrested in terror-related cases.
Kappan’s arrest and the unraveling of the terror network in South India
UP Police vouchsafe that the arrest of Kappan and the other two had helped the intelligence agencies unravel the terror network in South India. Badruddin (Kappan’s roommate) and Khan provided crucial inputs that led to a series of arrests and raids across South India. The Q-Branch of Tamil Nadu Police which questioned them in Lucknow jail were shocked to learn about the terror training camps organized by PFI in South India. Joint raids conducted by Anti-Terror Squads of Tamil Nadu and Kerala Police in Pathanapuram and Ranni revealed that months-long secret training camps were organized at these places by PFI. Batteries and wires used for bomb-making training were recovered from these sites. All these incidents were reported in Kerala media indicating the links with PFI activists in jail.
Those journalists who run the ‘Free Kappan’ campaign are surely aware of these developments. But they are playing the victim card to tarnish the image of UP Police and the Yogi Government.
See How Newslaundry’s Akanksha Kumar misquotes Sreedathan and ignores his request to rectify them
Too clever by half
Before filing the report, Akanksha had called up Sreedathan for his comments on the charge sheet and the Kappan reports in Indus Scrolls. He explained Kappan’s links with PFI. However, he expressed his inability to engage in a long conversation as he had to go abroad the next day. Akanksha sent a couple of questions on WhatsApp and requested him to answer them. Also, Sreedathan told Akansha that the report was filed by a journalist who is no more working with Indus Scrolls and if she needed more details she should call him later as he has to recheck the facts in the report. Sreedathan has withdrawn himself from editorial responsibilities ever since he joined Organiser as its Associate Editor.
Sreedathan requested Akanksha to play back the statement if at all she was using it in her report. Finding that his quotes were heavily doctored to suit her agenda, Sreedathan asked Akanksha to change them. To prevent her from playing mischief again, he wrote down the statement and sent it to her, which she did not use. “Kumar quoted me without my approval. More importantly, she did not use that part of my statement that explained Kappan’s links with PFI. This betrays her agenda and the designs of her advisors,” said Sreedathan.
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