Tag: Hindu symbol

How the BJP Spun a ‘Swastika’ out of a Nazi Symbol to Discredit Anti-CAA Protests

Republic TV broadcast an entire show claiming that the Hindu symbol was ‘abused’ by protestors at Shaheen Bagh.

BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra tweeted an anti-Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) poster and claimed that it disrespects the Hindu symbol ‘Swastika’. “Hum dekhenge…so this is what the protestors in Shaheen Bagh want to show in the name of CAA protests. Destruction of holy symbols of Hindus. “Destruction of the holy Swastika”?? Off course they were the once in JNU who shouted, “There will be war till India is destroyed.” Wake up before it’s too late,” he tweeted. Patra’s tweet drew over 7,000 likes and more than 3,000 retweets in less than two hours.

[Translated from “हम देखेंगे” ..तो ये शाहीन बाग वाले CAA के Protest के नाम में दरअसल यही देखना चाहतें है .. हिंदुओं के पवित्र चीन्हों की बर्बादी ..”पवित्र स्वस्तिक” की बर्बादी?? Off course they were the once in JNU who shouted “भारत की बर्बादी तक जंग रहेगी जंग रहेगी” WAKE UP BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE]

Based on Patra’s tweet, Republic broadcast a show on January 16, also claiming that the Hindu symbol was ‘abused’ by protestors at Shaheen Bagh.

CNN News18’s Amish Devgan tweeted along similar lines saying, “स्वस्तिक का यह पोस्टर ग़लत है । (This poster of Swastika is wrong.)”

OpIndia wrote an impassioned article on the poster and claimed that the Shaheen Bagh protests promote ‘Islamist supremacy’ and ‘Hinduphobia’. The media outlet’s founder Rahul Roushan tweeted the poster and wrote, “Islam crushing Hinduism.”

Other usual suspects were Shefali Vaidya, Vivek Agnihotri and The Frustrated Indian.

A similar assertion was raised by CVoter founder, Yashwant Deshmukh and media outlet My Nation.

Nazi symbol, not the Hindu symbol ‘Swastika’ 

The symbol on the poster is not the ‘Swastika’ but the hooked-cross adopted by the Nazi Party. The most visible difference between the two is the absence of the four dots between the arms of the cross. Furthermore, the Nazi symbol is rotated at an angle of 45 degrees.

False claim viral

That the symbol on the poster represents the Hindu ‘Swastika’ is a false claim viral across social media platforms. One Rajan Thakur who identifies himself as a BJYM UP coordinator on Twitter shared the photograph with the exact words used by Sambit Patra.

Also read: Post CAA, BJP-Linked WhatsApp Groups Mount a Campaign to Foment Communalism

Another user Ajay Raghuwanshi whose Twitter bio reads ‘BJP social media’ also shared the image.

The claim is viral on Twitter and Facebook.

The article was originally published on Alt News. You can read it here.