How Indian news channels invented a war

ISLAMABAD: Major Indian news outlets broadcast a torrent of fabricated and misleading reports on May 8 in desperation to vilify Pakistan.

“The coordinated disinformation campaign on 8th May designed to inflame nationalist sentiment did not come from trolls but a stream of misleading content played from mainstream media networks with massive national audiences,” said TRT Global (international news agency).

The flood of fabrications prompted rare introspection from a few influential voices. Indian author Basant Maheshwari, who commands a large online following, issued a public apology: “I have NEVER deleted tweets but today I am deleting all tweets that I made without verifying the claims of our Indian media channels. I feel sad not because of tweeting but more so because I (wrongly) believed what I saw!” Let’s have a glance on some of the most hilarious lies and false claims broadcast on Indian mainstream media channels on Thursday. On Thursday, Indian channel DNA went so far as to post on its official X handle: “India attacks Pakistani Capital Islamabad!” The post was later deleted without explanation. A little while later, Zee News amplified claimed that “Pakistan’s Capital Islamabad has been occupied!”

The frenzy didn’t stop when Aaj Tak simulated a military strike on Karachi Port, broadcasting the fabricated destruction live from its studio as if covering a real-time offensive. India Today joined in by alleging an Indian assault on both Lahore and Karachi. Times Now Bharat took it a step further with theatrical newsroom histrionics, even enlisting a retired Indian serviceman to legitimise the charade. “The performance was so exaggerated that it drew both public ridicule and concern,” stated an international news agency.

Among the most egregious fabrications was a report from ABP News, falsely claiming that Pakistani Army Chief General Asim Munir had been arrested. The disinformation reached absurd levels when Zee News aired graphics declaring that the Pakistan Army had surrendered after Indian forces “captured several major cities.” Screens simultaneously showed Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif hiding in a bunker and surrendering to Indian forces within the same segment.