On Sunday, July 23, Communist leader Subhashini Ali attempted to maliciously use the ongoing disturbance in Manipur to spread canards against the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. Hours later, after being lambasted by Netizens for spreading fake news and getting the Manipur police to file a case against her and others, based on a complaint filed by BJP State Vice-President Chidananda Singh, the former MP and CPI(M) leader Subhashini Ali ‘apologised’ for posting the fake news.
Twenty-four hours have, however, past since Subhashini Ali admitted that she had spread fake news about the Manipur incident and the RSS, yet she has not bothered to delete her malicious tweet.
They are the Manipur accused. Recognise them by their clothes. यह मणिपुर कर आरोपित हैं। इन्हें कपड़ो से पहचानो pic.twitter.com/ZyUgSVQUcZ
— Subhashini Ali (@SubhashiniAli) July 23, 2023
On July 20, the video of the 4th May incident where a mob paraded two women naked and allegedly gang-raped one of them in Manipur went viral on social media after which opposition parties launched a relentless attack on BJP and stalled the parliament.
Trying to use the opportunity to defame BJP and RSS, several Communist leaders and social media users circulated an image of two men in RSS uniforms claiming that they are the culprits behind the horrific incident in Manipur seen in the viral video. Joining the bandwagon were former MP and CPI(M) leader Subhashini Ali and JNUSU president Aishe Ghosh. They too tried to blame RSS for the incident. They used a photograph showing a man and a teenager in RSS uniforms to falsely claim that they are the men behind the viral video incident.
On the 23rd of July, Former MP and CPI(M) leader Subhashini Ali uploaded pictures of the two men in RSS dress along with the screengrab of the viral video of the Manipur incident. In her tweet, she writes, “They are the Manipur accused. Recognise them by their clothes.”
Infuriated by the audacious attempt to malign RSS’ image by propagating fake news, several social media users lambasted Subhashini Ali and other opposition leaders who used the image of the two men dressed in RSS uniforms and linked it to the Manipur incident.
Netizens schooled the CPI)M) leader by informing her that the two men in the photo were actually BJP’s Vice-President in Manipur Chidananda Singh and his teenage son Sachinanda Singh, and they have no link with the incident.
On the 23rd of July, BJP State Vice-President Chidananda Singh himself came out to bust the fake news. He wrote a letter to the Manipur DGP requesting to initiate legal action in this matter. In the letter, he gave the names of some of the handles or groups that have shared the fake news and asked the DGP to take necessary actions against them.
When the netizens called out the propaganda and reminded her that this is fake news, she asked for apologies. Now, a day has passed since the CPI(M) leader tweeted her ‘apologetic’ tweet, yet she hasn’t bothered to take down her false and malicious tweet, leaving one to wonder if she was at all sincere or was it all a farce.
