In a recent development in the series of actions against those spreading false news about attacks on migrant workers in Tamil Nadu, the police arrested Manish Kashyap, a Bihar-based YouTuber. The arrest was recorded on Saturday, March 18, at the Jagdishpur police station in Bettiah, after he surrendered before the police.
The Tamil Nadu and Bihar police had booked Manish for spreading false news about attacks against migrant workers through his social media handles and his YouTube channel. His channel, named Sach Tak, published several videos showcasing alleged attacks on North Indian migrant workers in Tamil Nadu. The Economic Offenses Unit (EOU) of Bihar registered cases against Manish and three others on the charges of "indulging in spreading fake videos of migrants being killed and beaten up in Tamil Nadu on social media", and proceeded to attach his properties. He finally surrendered fearing arrest and attachment of his assets, according to a statement from the Bihar Police.
तमिलनाडु में कामकाजी बिहार के निवासियों के लिए असत्य, भ्रामक एवं उन्माद फ़ैलाने वाले वीडियो को प्रसारित करने एवं आर्थिक अपराध थाना कांड सं0 3/23 तथा 4/23 के अभियुक्त मनीष कश्यप ने बिहार पुलिस एवं EOU के दबिश के कारण बेतिया के जगदीशपुर थाने में किया आत्मसमर्पण।#BiharPolice
— Bihar Police (@bihar_police) March 18, 2023
The police statement also said that the Bihar state police formed a special team on March 15 to nab him. The EOU, along with the Patna and Champaran police conducted raids in search of Manish at several locations on March 17. Later, on the morning of March 18, he surrendered before the police.
The Bihar police had filed an FIR on March 6 in connection with spreading false videos of attacks against migrants in Tamil Nadu and booked four persons including Manish after 30 videos uploaded on social media were identified as fake. On March 6, Aman Kumar, one of the four accused, was arrested in Jamui. “He is accused of uploading old videos on social media and creating rumours. That video was completely fake. He was trying to create tension between people of Bihar and Tamil Nadu through such a video," Additional Director General of Police (ADGP), Law, and Order, GS Gangwar said.
In the last week of February, videos showing alleged attacks and murders of Bihari migrant workers in Tamil Nadu were circulated on the internet. They became viral, and based on such videos, Hindi dailies reported that Tamil Nadu is an unsafe state for migrant workers. Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar alluded to this news, reportedly referring to a story from the Hindi daily Dainik Bhaskar, which falsely claimed that Bihari migrant labourers were being subject to ‘Talibani’ style attacks in Tamil Nadu.
On March 2, the Tamil Nadu Directorate General of Police (DGP) Sylendra Babu issued a statement clarifying that Bihari migrant labourers in Tamil Nadu were not in danger. Later, allegations made by Dainik Bhaskar were found to be false. Consequently, the Tiruppur North police booked an editor of Dainik Bhaskar under sections 153A (promoting enmity between different groups) and 505(i)(b) (intent to cause fear or alarm to the public) of the IPC.