Several editors and journalists have made an appeal to all institutions to uphold their constitutional mandate in the wake of brazen calls for attacks against religious minorities, especially Muslims, under the guise of everything ranging from Covid-19 to hijab.

“The concerted amplification of hatred has been growing over the past years and months, as has the attendant advocacy of violence. Sometimes, the occasion is an election, at other times it is a political gathering, a so-called ‘dharam sansad’, or a controversy over clothing. Or even the screening of a movie,” stated the appeal signed by more than 20 editors and journalists.

Among the signatories to the appeal are former editor-in-chief of The Hindu N. Ram, senior journalist Mrinal Pandey, executive editor of The Caravan Vinod Jose, founder editors of The Wire Siddharth Varadarajan, Siddharth Bhatia and M.K. Venu, co-editors of Sabrangindia Teesta Setalvad and Javed Anand and The Telegraph editor R. Rajagopal.

They highlighted how systematic hate campaigns are unleashed at regular intervals against minorities and how top political leaders have been silent while sections of the mainstream media played along.

“Months before, we saw systematic hate being propagated against Muslims under the pretext of Covid-19, including calls by legislators for their socio-economic boycott. Disturbingly, the term ‘corona jihad’ was fabricated and amplified by sections of the media establishment,” the appeal said.

It drew attention to how calls for annihilation of Muslims were made at a religious event in Haridwar in December last year and Muslim women were systematically targeted through social media platforms and the Bulli Bai app.

“Since December 2021, well-synchronised calls for the annihilation of Muslims have been made, beginning with a religious meet in Haridwar that month. Muslim women and girls have been systematically targeted in 2021 and 2022 through social media platforms, including the pernicious Bulli Bai App. The ugly controversy over the hijab in Karnataka has resulted in Muslim women in different parts of India being harassed and humiliated,” the appeal said.

It cited how even The Kashmiri Files, a film about what the makers call a “genocide” of Pandits in the Valley, is being used to whip up hatred against Muslims. “Most recently, the screening of The Kashmir Files — a film that cynically exploits the suffering and tragedy of the Kashmiri Pandits by using their plight as a pretext for the promotion of hatred against Muslims — has seen orchestrated attempts inside and outside movie halls to incite anti-Muslim sentiment.”

“Attempts have been made from the highest levels of government to stifle fully justified criticism of the film and of the violent reaction it is generating by claiming there is a ‘conspiracy’ afoot to ‘discredit’ it,” noted the signatories.

The letter pointed out that India now stands at “a dangerous place, with the founding values of our secular, democratic and republican Constitution coming under flagrant assault from prejudiced ideas, acts of prejudice, discrimination, and violent incidents, all planned and orchestrated as part of an anti-constitutional political project”.

“That we have seen elected officials and others who have sworn an oath under the Constitution amplifying some of these multiple and connected instances of orchestrated hate through acts of commission and omission, with sections of the media assisting this project, makes the situation even more urgent,” the signatories noted, urging constitutional institutions to assert their independence.

“That is why it is both urgent and crucial that India’s constitutional institutions, and especially the President, the higher judiciary, and the Election Commission, discharge their mandate under our Constitution and that the media perform their responsibility to the people of India by asserting their independence and speaking truth to power.”