New Delhi: Days after a row broke out over Bloomsbury India’s decision to withdraw publication of a book on Delhi riots, a city-based publisher is now set to launch a new book on the findings of an independent panel into the violence with several seemingly contentious claims.
Titled Delhi Riots: Conspiracy Unraveled, the 150-page book alleges that “radical” Islamic groups like Pinjra Tod, the alumni association of Jamia Millia Islamia, Popular Front of India, among others, instigated the riots in north-east Delhi by exploiting the Muslim community for their “ulterior objective of dividing the country on communal lines”.
It also claims that the violence that rocked the national capital between 23 and 26 February was pre-planned and the Hindu community was caught unawares.
Edited by journalists Aditya Bhardwaj and Ashish Kumar, the book primarily draws on the findings of a six-member panel of a Delhi-based trust, Call for Justice.
The panel was led by Justice Ambadas Joshi, a retired Bombay High Court judge. A retired IAS and IPS officer each were on the panel too. Its report had been submitted to Union Home Minister Amit Shah in June.
Prabhat Prakashan is set to launch the book in English and Hindi (Dilli Dangey: Saazish Ka Khulasa) in early September. ThePrint has accessed a copy of the manuscript.
“The reason for publishing this book on such a sensitive subject is to help in bringing the truth forward. Religious fundamentalism patronised by political parties must be exposed and this book helps to do that so we decided to take up this project,” said Prabhat Kumar, director, Prabhat Prakashan.
This is the second book on Delhi riots with similar claims that is set for publication. Last week, Garuda Prakashan announced the publication of Delhi Riots: The Untold Story after Bloomsbury India withdrew just ahead of the book launch citing “responsibility towards society”.
The book reportedly claims that Delhi riots were an “urban warfare”, “engineered by radical Muslims and Urban Maoists”.
Also read: Publisher Garuda gets over 15k pre-orders in a day for Delhi riots book Bloomsbury cancelled
Other claims in the book
In the manuscript of Delhi Riots: Conspiracy Unravelled, the other key findings include allegations that the local leaders of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the ‘Islamic’ groups mentioned used anti-CAA protests to fan the spread of misinformation and hate speech campaigns after the assembly elections in Delhi.
The move was a part of their bid to augment the hate-speech narrative and link it with emotions, fear and religion, claims the book. It adds that the groups managed to get the messages delivered from mosques in daily meetings and through loudspeakers in north-east Delhi localities several times a day.
It alleges that after the necessary planning, these groups executed the attacks using large quantities of stones, petrol bombs, catapults, country-made guns, acids packets, among others. Around 7,000 outsiders in the age group of 15-35 joined the misinformed local residents and led these attacks, it claims.
Organisations such as the Bhim Army joined hands with these groups and mobilised their supporters to join anti-CAA protestors by tagging the sensitive issue of reservation to the mix, it claims.
The timing of the attacks was planned, as evident from activist Umar Khalid’s comments on 17 February in which he warned of protests during the visit of US President Donald Trump, alleges the book.
It claims the Hindu community was unaware of the planning. The purported testimonies of some witnesses/victims reveal that on 24 February, Muslim schools were closed and even the parents of Muslims children withdrew their wards from other schools at around 10 am, just prior to the attacks.
The book also seeks to present a detailed analysis of how social media was misused during these riots.
“The conspirators behind the riots and the anti-CAA protests… exploited the narrative power of the internet to spread misinformation, propaganda, and to influence the public to follow their propaganda. These were used by the radical groups since inception to spread false propaganda, among the masses and also to manage, co-ordinate the protests as well as riots among the groups which were spread over a wide geographical area,” it claims.
The writer is associated with RSS. He is research director at Vichar Vinimay Kendra, a New Delhi-based think-tank, and has authored two books on RSS, and recently-released ‘Ramjnmabhoomi: Truth, Evidence, Faith’.
Also read: Kangana Ranaut’s Twitter timeline is Manorama yearbook, Jhansi ki Rani edition
Everyone is comment section blaming right wing news portals, BJP and RSS in context of Delhi riots without any substantial proof. No one says a single word on Tahir Hussain, who himself confessed it was planned by him and I really condemn Kapil Mishra’s speech but that doesn’t mean he instigated the riot . I am no supporter of right wing, I am neither a bhakt nor a librandu. And yes Hindus retaliated because they were attacked, anyone would do the same when they are attacked. If any right winger was involved in pre planning the riot, get proof and get them arrested.
Don’t turn intentionally blind just to unsee the facts. If you don’t like a book after reading, then criticize it or write a book on top of it but simply pressuring the publisher to break the established deal just because your ideology doesn’t match theirs, it is unfair and questions FOE. Looking at hipocrisy of you people, I feel bhakts are better. Atleast they condemn the misconduct of right wing.
Just an opinion.
Well, this news and the lack of any subsequent protests is a resounding blow to hate-propagandist and misinformation sites like OP India and Shankhnaad, who had gone to town crying hoarse about a ‘book ban.’ The voices against the earlier book were mostly raised by prominent Bloomsbury authors about a respected publisher giving out a book that’s pure BJP propaganda. No one asked for the book to be banned!
The credentials of the books and the authors are clear. Chandra Wadhwa, the trustee of ‘Call for (IN)Justice’ is also a trustee of the India Foundation, governed by the likes of BJP leaders Ram Madhav, Baijayant Pandya and Jayant Sinha, besides NSA Ajit Doval’s son. The book is supposed to be based on a report that’s based on fake news from OP India itself. ( 😀 !!) Every member of the ‘fact’ finding teams has clear links to BJP, Modi and\or Gujarat. Justice Ambadas Joshi also headed a ‘Fact Finding Committee’ trying to communalize the Plaghar lynching, and demanded that the case be handed over to NIA! The book that was not published by Bloomsbury is co-authored by lawyer Monika Arora who has also written for OP India, and funnily signed a petition to ban a book by Wendy Doniger. Among those present at the ‘unauthorised’ launch were OpIndia editor Nupur Sharma, as well as the man who lit the fuse for the Delhi riots – sore loser Kapil Mishra!!
But here’s the really shocking part – all the Delhi riots FIRs and arrests are based on these ‘fake reports’, which means that the entire
DELHI POLICE CASES ON THE RIOTS ARE BASED ON FAKE NEWS FROM OPINDIA!!! WAH MODIJI WAHH!!!
(I could die falling off my chair laughing after posting this!! So cool to watch lies catching up with the serial liar!! 😀 :D)
Good one. I shd have first read your comment then gone ahead with reading articles on this 😀
Pakistan started kargil. India responded and more of the Pakistanis died. According to the logic given in one of the comments India is culprit. Right ?
If we believe, what is written in the book then what one can explained about DEATH TOLL-where number of Muslim community is more??
If one raised the issue about inflammatory speeches, if any given, by Muslim activists, why Book is silent about HATE SPEECHES given by ruling party leaders??
If anybody want to fake propaganda, Book should have a disclaimer ” IT IS AN ADVERTISEMENT”.
I think, Publishers, who ever it may be have sense of SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY, too..
Other-Wise let it be left to the wisdom of readers..
The death toll of Kashmiri militants is much higher than that of army which is countering them, what do we conclude about the identity of the aggressor, using your logic ?
Germans started WW2. Yet more Germans died than people of any other country. By your logic Germany was the victim in WW2. Sometimes you cannot finish what you start. Bangalore riots is one more example.
I am a Hindu. And I am an Indian. But to me this book is fiction. There is no way that it can be true. Muslims, the aggressor is incredible where the government of the day is what it is and its track record ever since it came to power is what the world is watching in complete dismay. And the author is associated with RSS. Sad I am is all I can say.
Why the inverted commas for the word ‘radical’?
Is this The Print’s pathetic & sorry attempt at a whitewash?
Are you guys even aware that your credibility has reached its nadir?
Morons.