Some events that occurred in late October were inflicted by rumours and fake news on social media. These attempts were committed to disturbing communal harmony in the states of Tripura. But, the authorities acted fast, and it didn’t turn into large-scale riots. The situation soon came under the control of the authorities. Still, some unfortunate violent incidents happened in the Amravati District of Maharashtra. The violence was induced by rumours about communal attacks in Tripura.
Innumerable rallies in Tripura:
There were countless processions held in Tripura against the attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh. But, these processions took place in different parts of the state. Still, most of them were peaceful. As per reports, in one rally that was held in Panisagar of North Tripura, some miscreants tried to attack a local mosque but failed in their attempt. After some time, misleading pictures of a burning mosque were shared on social media. This resulted in some tensions between the two communities. Still, the administration was quick to action and Tripura police clarified that no mosque was burned.
Some days back, an image of a broken idol of Lord Shiva that was found at an abandoned hillock in Kailashahar of Unakoti district was shared. It was being circulated on social media for inciting communal violence. The Tripura police said that there was no way to tell whether it was broken earlier or there was any natural cause behind it.
On receiving reports about attempts to attack mosques at night and threaten communal peace, the Tripura police decided to give security to all mosques in the state. Most of these posts were shared by outsiders in the state. The Tripura Jamat President said that some people are trying to disturb communal peace and defame the state government.
The political parties and civil society are trying to restore normalcy-
The silver lining in this cloud was the fact that the administration came together to restore normalcy. Some people belonging to different sections of the societies have been arrested in this case. Even opposition parties joined together for the support meetings organized by the authorities. One such meeting was held in Panisagar. In that meeting, four MLA’s from different parties of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI-M) and others participated, rising above their political ideologies.
On the night of Kali Puja, the local Muslims like always took part in the festival with Hindus in puja of the Goddess.
Ministry of Home affairs had to step into the case:
The incidents in these two states highlight an important issue about the harmful impacts of sharing fake news on social media. Every person has the right to freedom of expression in a truly democratic setup. But, it does not imply that people have the right to share fake news that might formulate violence.
In the matter of Tripura, fake posts of old political clashes were shared as images of communal violence in Tripura. After the restoration of peace in the region, the fake campaigns on social media are continually being shared to harm the communal peace in the region.
Even the Ministry of Home Affairs had to issue a clarification that no mosque was damaged in the Gomati district, denying the social media claims. The state authorities took quick action to stop the rumour from spreading on social media. Otherwise, this could be a repetition of the Amravati incident.
Political violence in the state:
Tripura is all set to hold Civic body elections on 25 November. The opposition parties comprising CPI, CPI(M), Trinamool Congress, and Congress have accused that their candidates are not allowed to freely campaign and are being attacked. The ruling BJP party also said that its supporters were attacked at some places. It is important to understand that although communal harmony has been re-established in the region, political violence is a cause of grave concern. Free and fair elections can not take place amid violence. The authorities need to make sure that the region has no communal or political violence.
