A video showing veteran journalist Rajdeep Sardesai being verbally attacked at a Bangalore eatery has gone viral on social media. In the video, a man in a striped t-shirt is seen shouting angrily at Sardesai, telling him not to “hate Hindus” as he was “born in India”.
The incident took place in a bustling eatery at Richmond Circle during breakfast hours, as the senior journalist had just wrapped up a shoot and was having a meal with his team.
Girish Alva posted a tweet calling it “Rajdeep’s Madison Square Moment”, alluding to the incident in 2014, where a mob of Modi supporters heckled and hurled abuses at Sardesai, at New York’s Madison Square Garden.
Sardesai to The Quint : “It is an Occupational Hazard!”
The Quint reached out to Rajdeep, who said that he was unfazed by the incident as “it is part of the job”
I take it as an occupational hazard. For me, it is water over a duck’s back. As long as violence and hate speech is avoided, people are free to say what they like. If my family is safe, it doesn’t matter if they attack me personally.Rajdeep Sardesai to The Quint
He further added, “I’m not here to play the victim. It was not me who posted the video on the social media. The people who have posted it should decide if the they think this is acceptable.”
Sardesai, who is also the consulting editor of the India Today Group, is currently in Bengaluru covering the upcoming 2018 Karnataka Assembly Elections, has said that Bangalore is a “beautiful city” and that “such incidents happen, but the majority of people there are decent and dignified.”
Twitterati Stand By Sardesai
Colleagues and twitterati came out in support of Sardesai, for maintaining his composure without being provoked by the remarks hurled at him.
While responding to fellow journalist Rohini Singh, Rajdeep too, took to Twitter to thank people for their support saying, “these goons do not represent Bengaluru or India.”
While Some Support the Heckler
Girish Alva: “Look Beyond the Heckling”
We also spoke to Girish Alva, who said that “even though the heckling was in bad form, but looking beyond that, there is a sentiment of widespread anger against certain media personalities which needs to be addressed.”
Alva claims he has received flak and been harassed on Twitter as well for sharing the video.
B’luru Police Trolled for Arrests That Never Took Place
As twitter on a frenzy, while some lauded, others condemned the “arrest/detention” of the man, saying that legally no harm was done and the so called “arrests” are unwarranted.
Owing to the social media buzz around the alleged arrest of the man in the video, the Ashok Nagar Police Twitter handle made an official statement, clarifying that no arrests or detentions have been made with regards to the incident.
The man in the video is allegedly employed in Bengaluru’s flourishing IT sector. He could not be reached for comment.
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