Multiple FIRs Later, News 18 TV Anchor Apologises for Remarks on Sufi Saint

While this is not the first time the anchor has made anti-Muslim statements, there was an uproar over the derogatory remarks he made about Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti during his show that aired on Monday.

New Delhi: After a series of police complaints and FIRs against News 18 India’s managing editor Amish Devgan over his comment about renowned Sufi saint Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti of Ajmer, the primetime anchor has apologised on air, claiming he had made an unintentional mistake.

“I have full faith in Hazrat Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti,” said Devgan, in the apology which aired on Wednesday afternoon. “I myself go to Ajmer Sharif for his ziyarat and if my statement has hurt anyone, then I regret it.”

Earlier, he had tweeted that he had “inadvertently referred to ‘Khilji’ as Chishti”:

Since the name of Khilji did not figure in the debate at all and just prior to the anchor’s controversial remarks a panelist had referred to Chishti as an examplar of the peaceful spread of Islam in the subcontinent, it is not clear why Devgan confused Khilji for Chishti. The Wire has tried to contact him for a comment, but he could not be reached. He answered his phone once, but disconnected it after promising to call back. Thereafter, despite several attempts, he could not be reached. This story will be updated when he responds.

Meanwhile, followers of the Chishti Sufi tradition are not satisfied with the apology. “While we accept the apology, it is not enough because there is no guarantee that something like this will not be repeated in the future,” said Salman Chishty, the Gaddi Nashin (spiritual heir) of Dargah Ajmer Sharif, while speaking to The Wire over the phone.

“Suppose there was no hue and cry by the followers of Khwaja Ghreeb Nawaz, it would have passed off as a matter of fact and thousands of ordinary people have believed the anchor,” he added. “We have also been exploring the possibility of approaching the Supreme Court with a prayer to issue guidelines in this regard so that this kind of mischief is not repeated in the future.”

On Monday, the news anchor, during a debate on a PIL about the Place of Worship Special Provision Act on his show ‘Aar Par’, had called Khwaja Moinuddin Chisthi, better known as Khwaja Ghreeb Nawaz, an “attacker” and “looter”.

Devgan can be seen referring to the revered sufi as “aakranta Chishti” and “lootere Chishti”. Following that, several police complaints and FIRs were registered against the anchor across the country.

When asked about the cases filed against the anchor, Chishty said, “The cases will take their own course.” He also tweeted about the news anchor using the hashtag #ArrestAmishDevgan.

“This extremist n radical man @AMISHDEVGAN masquerading as a TV anchor is a massive bolt on Journalistic ethos as well as all Tv/Social Media platforms! Now that since last evening more than 100 plus police complaint n FIRs have been lodged against him across India for disturbing,” Chishty tweeted on Wednesday.

In addition to police complaints and FIRs, several Muslim organisations have also condemned the anchor’s remarks. The Darul Uloom Deoband, an Islamic seminary which is often considered an opponent to the Barelvi and Sufi sect of Islam, also issued a press statement condemning the anchor’s choice of words. Deoband also demanded legal action against the channel.

Meanwhile, a group of Muslim lawyers from Mumbai approached the News Broadcasters Association (NBA) demanding an enquiry against the anchor and temporary suspension of the channel. “We, therefore respectfully urge you to call upon Mr Ameesh Devgan and ban Channel 18 India for destroying the communal harmony and hurting religious sentiments of peace-loving secular people of India. His remark of AKRANTA CHISHTI & LOOTERE CHISHTI are highly condemnable to all the follower of Khwaja Gareeb Nawaz and even the public at general,” noted the lawyers.

The police complaints against Devgan have invoked Sections 295A (Deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs), 153A (Promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc, and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony), 505 (Statements conducing to public mischief) and 34 (Acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

This not the fist time that Devgan has had to apologise for anti-Muslim remarks and biased reporting against Muslims. According to Alt News, during his show ‘Aar Paar’ last month, Devgan played a video of an altercation between locals in a Muslim-dominated area in Kurla Pipe Road claiming, “There is big news coming from Kurla. A huge crowd has assembled from the mosque after namaz. The police was manhandled when they reached the area. We are showing you these visuals…”

However, the facts were otherwise and a police case was filed. Devgan apologised a few days later, claiming that it was a mistake.

In April this year, Newslaundry had reported that during a show “when a Muslim panelist told Devgan that he should not introduce a Hindu-Muslim angle to the issue, the anchor feigned rage and asked him to “shut up and sit down”. This panelist was also muted.

Moreover, according to the report, earlier that day, “the channel showed snippets of a man claiming that ‘some Muslim extremists’ were flouting the lockdown because of their enmity with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The channel also inexplicably ran a segment on how the Tablighi Jamaat had helped convert Pakistani cricketer Mohammad Yousuf to Islam.”