FIR against RTI activist Manik Goyal, nine others over 'misleading' social media posts on CM Mann's helicopter use
PTC News Desk: An FIR has been registered against 10 people including RTI activist Manik Goyal for allegedly spreading misleading and objectionable content on social media about the use of a helicopter linked to the Punjab chief minister.
The case has been registered under Sections 353(1) and 353(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, which deal with spreading false information that can cause public mischief or promote hatred between groups, along with Section 61(2) related to criminal conspiracy.
Vaibhav Sehgal, Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (Cybercrime), Ludhiana Police, said, “The probe in the matter is ongoing, and the FIR has been registered after preliminary investigation into the social media posts uploaded by the accused persons.”
“A preliminary examination of the uploaded contents reveals that it comprises distorted, unverified and patently incorrect assertions pertaining to the deployment and utilisation of a helicopter allegedly associated with the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Punjab. The content is predicted upon erroneous and interpretation of flight-tracking data, selective presentation of extraneous visuals and insinuatory remarks bereft of factual foundation, thereby constructing a false, misleading and deliberately fabricated narrative,” reads the FIR.
“The aforesaid posts seek to create an impression that the helicopter in question was allegedly engaged in unauthorised or suspicious activities during the period when Honourable CM was on an official foreign visit,” it adds.
Meanwhile Shiromani Akali Dal president Sukhbir Singh Badal said in a tweet that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann have started a crackdown on independent journalists and activists who have consistently exposed their anti-Punjab face. He said that the registration of a false case against RTI activist Manik Goel, iWorld TV journalist Mintu Guruseria, and LokAwazTV journalist Maninderjit Sidhu is an absurd attempt to silence the voice of free media and hide the failures of the AAP Punjab government. The Shiromani Akali Dal condemns this undeclared emergency.
Sukhbir Singh Badal further said that it is clear all this is being done at the behest of the AAP’s Delhi high command, as Arvind Kejriwal and Manish Sisodia have realised that their true face has been exposed and Punjabis are preparing to throw them out of power. The Shiromani Akali Dal strongly condemns this undeclared emergency. We stand in solidarity with the affected journalists and the RTI activist and demand the immediate withdrawal of this malicious FIR.
- PTC NEWS
