 "'If standing up for what's right is Naxalism, then #MeTooUrbanNaxal': Fuming Twitterati responds to Vivek Agnihotri's tweet"){kind=logo}
Politicians, lawyers, writers and civilians took to Twitter on Wednesday to respond to the trending #MeTooUrbanNaxal, after filmmaker Vivek Agnihotri urged “some young people” to make a list of “Urban Naxals”. He tweeted:
I want some bright young people to make a list of all those who are defending #UrbanNaxals Let’s see where it leads. If you want to volunteer with commitment, pl DM me. @squintneon would you like to take the lead?
— Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri (@vivekagnihotri) August 28, 2018
Agnihotri’s tweet has garnered a spectrum of reactions from across the Twitterati. Politicians:
There is only place for one NGO in India and it's called the RSS. Shut down all other NGOs. Jail all activists and shoot those that complain.
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) August 28, 2018
Welcome to the new India. #BhimaKoregaon
Urban Naxals: The most dreadful criminals of modern India https://t.co/PdnRZPU1q9
— Subramanian Swamy (@Swamy39) May 28, 2018
Had Gandhi, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar and Sadar Patel been with us today, they would have surely appeared as lawyers for all these human rights activists who are arrested by Pune police dubbing them as maoists. This is nothing less than emergency, indeed.
— Jignesh Mevani (@jigneshmevani80) August 29, 2018
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I have no sympathy whatsoever for Maoism but freedom of thought, belief & expression are fundamental rights in any democracy. To arrest activists who have neither committed nor facilitated violence is to betray our democracy. This is not the India that Gandhiji fought to free.
— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) August 29, 2018
Journalists and writers:
As a biographer of Gandhi, I have no doubt that if the Mahatma was alive today, he would don his lawyer's robes and defend Sudha Bharadwaj in court; that is assuming the Modi Sarkar hadn't yet detained and arrested him too
— Ramachandra Guha (@Ram_Guha) August 28, 2018
The arrest and harassment of 5 so-called urban naxals is a blatant attempt to criminalise political dissent. #MeTooUrbanNaxal
— S lrfan Habib एस इरफान हबीब عرفان حبئب (@irfhabib) August 29, 2018
I have all symptoms of being an #UrbanNaxal. Who should I report this to? #MeTooUrbanNaxal
— Suresh Mathew (@Suresh_Mathew_) August 29, 2018
Hey @vivekagnihotri, I volunteer to be on your list. Let's tag @vivekagnihotri with the hashtag #MeTooUrbanNaxal and help him build his list. We should all help this man in his noble endeavour. https://t.co/zY1Azarv8l
— Pratik Sinha (@free_thinker) August 29, 2018
If @Sudhabharadwaj is a naxal, I am a naxal too. Arrest me. #MetooUrbanNaxal
— nikhil wagle (@waglenikhil) August 29, 2018
Hi @vivekagnihotri,
— meghnad (Nerds ka Parivaar) (@Memeghnad) August 29, 2018
Dissent is important for our democracy to function and to hold our Government accountable. I intend to do exactly that.
Put me on your list.#metoourbannaxal
All love and respect for those who are saying #MeTooUrbanNaxal but there are many out there who don’t really have the privilege of caste, religion, money or class, to even say this. They know if the hit list is *real*, they will be the ones picked first.
— Ashwaq M (@ashwaqM) August 29, 2018
Hi @vivekagnihotri
— Sandhya (@TheRestlessQuil) August 29, 2018
How's that list going? Have enough? If not, put my name on it #MeTooUrbanNaxal
Put me on the list please #MeTooUrbanNaxal ....
— Harini Calamur (@calamur) August 29, 2018
If bright young people are making lists to target their fellow citizens, they can't be very bright. .. https://t.co/Q8qVmpaVC3
In the ‘new’ India human rights activists will be arrested but no one wants to touch groups like Sanathan Sanstha! And the country stays silent! #BhimaKoregaon
— Rajdeep Sardesai (@sardesairajdeep) August 28, 2018
Is the bigot filmmaker promoting his book? https://t.co/DbK3lBdubr
— Sagarika Ghose (@sagarikaghose) August 29, 2018
Celebrities:
Heard that a fellow filmmaker is making a list of people who are supporting the Human Right Activists. Please count me in #MeTooUrbanNaxal
— Ashwini Chaudhary (@DhoopAshwini) August 29, 2018
#MeTooUrbanNaxal is SUCH A TIGHT SLAP !!!!! 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 Kudos to #TwitterWarriors
— Swara Bhasker (@ReallySwara) August 29, 2018
#UrbanNaxal is the new Anti-National
— Dhruv Rathee (@dhruv_rathee) August 29, 2018
The word "Anti-national" became a big joke and lost its actual meaning after ministers & trolls started using it for anyone and everyone mindlessly.
Same thing is happening with Urban Naxal. That's why #MeTooUrbanNaxal
No gunja ..I don't like the left. I despise them..But that does not mean they need to be arrested !! #MeTooUrbanNaxal https://t.co/lMixBPAd9Q
— Tehseen Poonawalla Official 🇮🇳 (@tehseenp) August 29, 2018
Civilians:
Getting news that Pune police have raided/arrested among the finest Human rights activists&dissenting voices, such as Sudha Bharadwaj (a human rights lawyer), Gautam Navlakha (Former Pres of PUDR), Fr Stan Swamy (a human rights activist) & Ors. Fascist fangs are now openly bared
— Prashant Bhushan (@pbhushan1) August 28, 2018
If speaking against nonsense and standing up for what is right is naxalism then #MeTooUrbanNaxal @vivekagnihotri @rohini_sgh @pbhushan1 @paranjoygt @ArvindKejriwal @dhruv_rathee @BajpayeeManoj @ReallySwara
— Seasailor (@seasailor59) August 29, 2018
I am pretty sure if Bhagat Singh was alive today, he would be on that list too.#MeTooUrbanNaxal @vivekagnihotri
— Akshay Gupta (@akshay_gupta01) August 29, 2018
Congratulations, BJP on the most successful recruitment drive for naxals in the history of urban India.#MeTooUrbanNaxal
— Vidyut (@Vidyut) August 29, 2018
People prefer being called naxal to being seen as agreeing or even inoffensive to you.
I imagine you won't be using the "lesser evil" argument for 2019.
can't believe that people are being arrested to promote a book. #UrbanNaxals
— Rofl Gandhi 2.0 🏹 Commentary (@RoflGandhi_) August 29, 2018
Agnihotri’s posted the tweet calling for the “Urban Naxal” list after the Maharashtra Police on Tuesday raided the homes of prominent left-wing activists in several states and arrested at least five of them, as part of an investigation into the violence between Dalits and upper caste Peshwas at Bhima Koregaon village near Pune after the Elgar Parishad event on 31 December. Telugu poet Varavara Rao in Hyderabad, activists Vernon Gonzalves and Arun Ferreira in Mumbai, trade union activist Sudha Bhardwaj in Faridabad and civil liberties activist Gautam Navalakha in New Delhi have been arrested under the Indian Penal Code’s Section 153(A), which relates to promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language and committing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony.
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