Vijay Karnataka newspaper censured by PCI for targeting Muslims

The censure means that government advertising will be stopped for a certain period with the newspaper, as a means to hold the newspaper accountable for violating the Norms of Journalistic Conduct.
Vijay Karnataka held responsible for derogatory article targeting Muslim community
Vijay Karnataka held responsible for derogatory article targeting Muslim community
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The Press Council of India (PCI) censured Vijay Karnataka, a Bengaluru-based Kannada newspaper, for publishing an article that allegedly contained hate speech against Muslim community. The article in question, published on March 28, 2020, was titled "All those who have died from corona are from the same community – why do they still come together in the name of prayers?" The PCI order was issued on February 28, 2023, in response to a complaint filed three years ago by the Campaign Against Hate Speech (CAHS), a group that promotes media accountability. The censure means that government advertising will be stopped for a certain period with the newspaper for violating the Norms of Journalistic Conduct.

CAHS, in its complaint, alleged that the article attempted to blame the Muslim community for the spread of COVID-19. It alleged that all persons who died from COVID-19 were from the Muslim community and that this community was still offering namaz while Hindus and Christians respected the curfew. CAHS argued that the article violated the PCI's Norms of Journalistic Conduct, including targeting of a religious community, lack of neutrality, provocative writing, creation of communal disharmony, failure to ensure pre-publication verification, and also constituted several offenses under the Indian Penal Code.

The PCI initiated an inquiry into the matter and issued notices to Vijay Karnataka. The newspaper contended that the article did not mention the name of any particular community. It said that it was merely attempting to bring awareness to the community and that the article was based on facts in the public domain and did not violate any law.

However, the Inquiry Committee held that the article was targeting Muslims and had spread misinformation during the time of the pandemic and had targeted the Muslim community, thereby violating the Norms of the PCI to disseminate only verified news. The Committee had earlier suggested that Vijay Karnataka should tender an apology and publish the same in the newspaper, which the newspaper refused to do. The Committee held that newspapers should refrain from writing editorials that could create discord among people and fan the flames of communalism.

The Committee advised the PCI to severely censure Vijay Karnataka. The PCI accepted the Committee's findings and accordingly censured the newspaper. “The Press Council on consideration of records of the case and Report of the Inquiry Committee accepts reasons, findings and Committee and decides to adopt the report of the to censure Vijay Karnataka newspaper with aforesaid direction,” read the PCI’s statement.

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