Mohammad Zubair, the co-founder of Alt News, has recently been under fire online from a number of pro-Hindutva influencers, with some even calling for violence against the journalist. Threats against Zubair range from those calling for lone wolf attacks to those urging “extrajudicial steps” against him, reports journalist Alishan Jafry.
Zubair tweeted earlier to say that while he generally ignores or laughs off the barrage of abuse he receives, the flurry of tweets from people threatening to “physically harm & finish me” has increased since Alt News exposed false propaganda about murderous attacks on migrant Bihari workers in Tamil Nadu. Zubair also revealed to The Wire that he had previously received threats, but that this time they were angrier and more direct.
Several of the threats occurred as a result of Zubair confronting the individual who had made derogatory remarks about the women in the fact-checker’s family. In another instance, a Supreme Court lawyer tweeted that Zubair would never be forgiven.
