UPDATE: The Bureau of Police, Research and Development, Ministry of Home Affairs has removed the document which cited Alt News amid fact checkers.
On Sunday, the cat was the among the pigeons on Twitter, particularly among right-wing Twitter, when a document compiled by the National Cyber Research and Innovation Centre, Modernization Division, Bureau of Police, Research and Development, Ministry of Home Affairs went viral.
The document titled Fake News and Disinformation: How to spot and investigate - A guide for Law Enforcement Agencies, ostensibly to spot ‘fake news’ mentions a host of sites which many in the right-wing and among the government’s supporters consider biased against the current regime.
To reiterate, the bureau comes under the Home Ministry’s ambit which is headed by former BJP president and a man seen to be PM Modi’s closest confidant – Amit Shah.
These included The Quint and AltNews, two organisations which are viewed quite derisively by the current dispensation:
Check out the full list below:
• https://pib.gov.in/factcheck.aspx
• https://www.factcheck.org/
• https://reporterslab.org/fact-checking/
• https://factly.in/category/fake-news/
• https://www.boomlive.in/about-us/
• https://factcheck.telangana.gov.in/
• https://www.altnews.in/
• https://www.metadata2go.com/
• https://www.thequint.com/news/webqoof
• India Today -Anti Fake News War Room (AFWA)
• Times of India -Times Fact Check
• The Hindu -Fact Check
Not a single popular right-wing website including Swarajya and OpIndia.com were mentioned in the report.
Alt News co-founder Pratik Sinha tweeted: “The Bureau of Police Research and Development under Ministry of Home Affairs has listed @AltNewsunder resources for both fact-checking as well as investigation assistance. As an organisation, we are happy to offer any help that could slow down the flow of misinformation.”
OpIndia CEO Rahul Roushan tweeted: On this Mother's Day, I declare myself secular and liberal. I am no longer a supporter of Hindutva. I apologise to walking genius Rahul Gandhi and even Sanjay Jha.”
The report was later removed from its website.
Amit Shah’s health was the subject of rumours recently.
The Home Minister posted his statement on Twitter. He wrote, "From the last few days, some friends on social media are spreading rumours about my health. Some even tweeted that I had died."
"The country is going through the coronavirus pandemic and because of being the Home Minister, I had to work late night and hence, didn't find any time for the rumours," he said.
Amit Shah said he wishes all those spreading rumours about his ill health should concentrate on their work and let him focus on his.