Haldwani (Uttarakhand): Times Now reporters Thursday found themselves in an awkward situation when some Haldwani residents confronted them for maligning their image and calling them “Jihadi”.
Haldwani came to the media limelight after Uttarakhand High Court directed the local authorities to carry an eviction drive and clear the land that the Indian Railways claimed its own.
Local residents however contested the Railways claim saying they have sufficient documents to prove ownership of the land in question.
As many as 4,365 families risked losing their homes following the High Court order. The Supreme Court however came to their rescue, and in a major relief to them, the Apex Court Thursday stayed the HC order and deferred the hearing till February 07, 2023.
In the meantime, all small and major media houses sent their staff to Haldwani as the Supreme Court of India began the hearing in the case.
A minute by minute coverage of what they called “ground reporting” as well as from outside the Supreme Court was live on television screens.
Since majority of Haldwani residents are Muslims, the coverage of most of the national media was biased – full of rhetoric against Islam and Muslims.
Times Now in a report allegedly called Haldwani residents “Jihadi”. Grieved by the outrageous coverage, some Haldwani residents after noticing the presence of Times Now reporter and cameraman in the area confronted them and thanked them for maligning their image.
A video of the conversation between Haldwani residents and the media crew is now viral on social media.
“Shukriya bhai sahib .. bahut bahur shiukriya… Kaha se ho Navbharat ya Times Now? [Thanks a lot brother you called us Jihadi. Whom do you belong to.. Nav Bharat or Times Now?” local residents can be heard asking them in the viral video.
“Times Now”, the reporter replied nodding his head.
“Aap ne hame Jihadi kaha.. aap ne is area ko Jihadi kha.. Aap ka is ke liye bahut bahut shukriya… Aur kaisa laga aap ko? Chae wae piyenge? (You called as Jihadi. You labelled our entire area Jihadi. Thanks a lot for all this. Did you find anything wrong here? Why don’t you have some tea?” a local resident asked.
“Jihadiyon ke beech mein kaisa lag reha hai? Safe mehsoos kar reho? Ke Jihadiyon ki chae nahi peena? (How do you feel standing among the Jihadees? Safe or unsafe? Do you find drinking tea with jihadees comfortable?” another resident asked.
The video has received mixed reactions. While some said this is the best way to respond to the biased coverage which has become the hallmark of most of the national television networks in India, others said mocking reporters on the field for the “mistakes” of those sitting in the news room or their editors is improper. Watch the video:
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