News Tamil Nadu

Meet Puthiya Thalaimurai’s Alleged Journalist Niranjan Kumar, A Fake-News And Half-Truth Peddler And An Unofficial Propagandist For The DMK

December 4, 2024
The Commune

Niranjan Kumar, of Puthiya Thalaimurai who masquerades as a ‘journalist’ is known for peddling half-truths and fake news like a two-bit propagandist for the DMK.  His reports often lack accuracy, with facts distorted to align with the interests of his political masters. His posts on social media are often targeted mocking the BJP and those living in the north Indian states while unabashedly buttressing the DMK by peddling narratives favourable for them. There have been multiple instances where he has been caught producing biased reports that consistently favor Dravidianist or Leftist ideologies. Even when exposed for pushing one-sided narratives, Niranjan remains unapologetic, steadfast in advancing his partisan political agenda.

In this context, here are some instances where Dravidianist propagandist Niranjan Kumar, peddled narratives favourable to the DMK, reinforcing their narratives and ideology.

1. Mocking Hindu Sentiments Via Propaganda

On 18 September 2024, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu accused the former YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) government of using substandard ingredients, including animal fat, in the famous Tirupati laddu. However, YSRCP denied these allegations.

A laboratory report revealed that beef tallow, fish oil, and palm oil were used to prepare laddus, which were distributed as prasad at the renowned Sri Venkateswara temple in Tirupati. The report’s findings indicate that the ghee used to prepare the iconic Tirupati laddu prasadam during the YSRCP regime contained traces of animal fat, including beef tallow and fish oil, leading to widespread outrage and claims of disrespect toward religious sentiments.

As the entire Hindu community is outraged by reports of adulteration of Tirupati Laddu prasadam with beef tallow, pig fat and fish oil, the DMK-supporting Dravidianists in Tamil Nadu have pounced on the opportunity to mock Hindus and their worship of cows.

Dravidian journo Niranjan Kumar in an X post that seemingly justified the presence of beef fat in the holy prasadam, the Dravidianist journalist said “Let all those souls who were lynched to death attain peace“, in an apparent dig at gau rakshaks protecting cows from smugglers.

In another post he mocked at Hindus by making reference to a scene from the film ‘Ayan’ in which the antagonist offers laddu to a character played by actor Prabhu, to signify the striking of a deal. Prabhu offers the laddu back to the antagonist to confirm it is not poisoned. However, later Prabhu’s car meets with an accident because the antagonist had removed the nuts and bolts from the wheels.

“You thought I kept it in the laddu? I kept it in the nut-u“, says the antagonist.

In this case, the malice was actually in the laddu and so, the screenshot and snippet of this scene was shared by many Dravidianists and DMK-Congress supporters. Niranjan too shared the same screenshot to mock Hindus.

The bigoted Dravidian propagandist shared another screenshot from the movie ‘Yaaradi Nee Mohini’ in which the character blushes as she says “Achaho Perumale”. The propagandist at Puthiya Thalaimurai in a sadistic way expressed his elation at Hindu devotees being duped and made to eat laddu laden with beef fat.

2. Peddling Distorted Facts From Delhi

This is not the first instance of bias from Dravidianist journalist Niranjan Kumar. Previously, when the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) secured a historic third consecutive term in Haryana by winning 48 seats in the 2024 assembly elections, Kumar’s coverage was similarly skewed. In the elections, the Congress party secured 37 seats, with the 90-seat assembly holding voting in a single phase on 5 October 2024, and a turnout of around 68%. The BJP had also emerged victorious in the Haryana Assembly elections of 2014 and 2019, yet Kumar’s reporting failed to provide a fair or balanced account of these outcomes.

Despite facing significant opposition and unfavorable political predictions where Congress was projected to secure around 60 seats compared to the BJP’s 20, the BJP casually turned the tables. Silent voters in Haryana demonstrated their support for the BJP, and concerns over instability under Congress, particularly regarding the influence of the Jat community and employment issues, influenced the election results.

However, the Dravidianist journalists, promoted narratives to buttress the Congress. At midday, when the BJP was projected to secure 46 seats and Congress was trailing with only 38, Niranjan Kumar claimed on live TV that BJP spokespersons were avoiding the media due to expected turn in tides. He stated, “Spokespersons were holding continuous press briefings, but for the past half hour, they have been avoiding questions. This change comes as the polling landscape shifts, with the BJP fluctuating around 50 seats. We could see that BJP leaders here are anxious about their ability to sustain the government.”

This caught the attention of netizens and political observers, who took to social media to call him out and mock him with amusement. This isn’t the first instance of Niranjan Kumar’s dubious journalism in support of his political masters; he consistently demonstrates his loyalty at every opportunity.

3. Peddling Narrative For Congress During Lok Sabha

During this recent Lok Sabha election season, Kumar seemingly expressed a strong desire for the victory of the Congress, but when that did not materialize, he immediately started celebrating the success of the DMK like several other Dravidianist journalists.

In a post following Narendra Modi’s swearing-in for a third term as Prime Minister of India, Kumar intentionally misled his audience with false information on his X account, claiming that Modi’s third cabinet lacked any members directly elected from Tamil Nadu. This statement raised eyebrows, especially since the DMK, as the opposition, had won all the Lok Sabha seats in the state. It appeared as though he was implying that PM Modi should consider including DMK members in the cabinet.

Niranjan Kumar wrote, “Important: Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s third cabinet did not include a single member of parliament directly elected from Tamil Nadu. L Murugan, Nirmala Sitharaman, and others have also been elected to Rajya Sabha from other states.”

4. Spreading Distorted Facts About Removal of Statues In Parliament

In two other posts, Niranjan Kumar raised concerns about the removal of statues of Mahatma Gandhi and Ambedkar in the Parliament complex. However, this claim was promptly refuted and labeled as a fake narrative with the Parliament secretariat clarifying that the statues were being relocated systematically and respectfully within the Parliament House complex. Despite this clarification from the secretariat, the so-called Delhi-based journalist chose not to acknowledge or convey their statement, instead opting to propagate the narrative of the Congress party.

This post raises the question of whether Niranjan Kumar is indeed a journalist based in Delhi or if he is from 24, Akbar Road, New Delhi.

Niranjan Kumar wrote, “The Congress party has alleged that the statues of the Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi and the architect of the Constitution of India, Ambedkar, are being removed and placed in a corner. Congress alleges that BJP has started insulting political leaders“

5. Peddling Distorted Facts Favoring DMK Minister

Niranjan Kumar faced criticism from netizens for blindly sharing information without fact-checking, as promoted by a DMK minister. In a post on his X account, amid the ongoing uproar from I.N.D.I.Alliance partners regarding allegations of the central government “looting tax revenue” from states, he quoted DMK Minister PTR Palanivel Thiagarajan during a protest at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar. He wrote, “There was a Chief Minister in India who claimed the central government is deceiving them and spoke about federal principles. He said they are taking our state’s tax money and diverting it to other states: he is none other than the former Chief Minister of Gujarat, Narendra Modi, who is now the Prime Minister.”

However, his claims were quickly debunked. After assuming office, PM Modi increased the allocation of funds to states from 32% to 42%. He also reduced the population weightage in tax distribution from 27.5% to 15%.

Moreover, during the UPA regime from 2004 to 2014, the total funds available to states amounted to ₹30 lakh crore, while from 2014 to 2023, this figure soared to over ₹100 lakh crore.

In terms of tax sharing and assistance, Tamil Nadu received ₹1,52,921 crores under the UPA from 2004 to 2014. In contrast, this amount increased to ₹5,08,337 crores during the Modi regime from 2014 to 2023.

Additionally, Tamil Nadu has benefited from ₹10.76 lakh crores in funds, projects, and grants over the past nine years under the Modi government.

6. Peddled Fake News About Repo Rates

On 9 February 2023, the Reserve Bank of India raised the repo rate by 25 basis points to 6.50% to curb retail inflation. This move is expected to increase the cost of loans linked to external benchmarks, like the repo rate. Following the hike, DMK supporters, including journalist Niranjan Kumar of Puthiya Thalaimurai, spread misinformation, with Kumar suggesting that the dream of buying a house would remain unfulfilled. However, the rate hike is a standard response to inflationary pressures in a growing economy, a basic economic principle that Kumar either ignored or lacked knowledge of.

7. Parroted DMK Minister’s Line In Ponmudi Mud Throwing Incident, Blames BJP

Even now, Niranjan Kumar pushed a biased narrative in his recent coverage of an incident involving DMK Minister Ponmudi. On 3 December 2024, during Ponmudi’s visit to Villupuram to distribute relief materials and assess the damage caused by Cyclone Fengal, a group of individuals relief materials, staining his white shirt. The incident quickly went viral on social media, with initial reports suggesting that locals were angry at the governments inefficiency in relief work.

However, Niranjan Kumar shamelessly framed the incident with the headline, “Throwing mud at Minister Ponmudi… BJP woman functionary in the background.” This narrative was based on an explanation given by HRCE Minister PK Sekar Babu in an interview, and the police were still investigating the case, with no arrests reported at that time. Meanwhile, other videos began circulating on social media showing a group of agitated youths and locals—agitated by the government’s relief efforts—tearing down DMK banners associated with Ponmudi. Netizens quickly questioned whether these youths were affiliated with the BJP, mocking the narrative. Despite the growing online discussion, Kumar continued to push his one-sided portrayal of the incident.

8.Made Unverified Claims During Evacuation Mission During Russia-Ukraine War

In March 2022, during the Russia-Ukraine war, Niranjan alleged that South Indian students were discriminated in the evacuation operation from Ukraine. The journalist based his claim on an unverified source, a parent of a student who had returned from Ukraine, and did not provide any credible evidence or corroboration for his allegation.

9.Peddled Lies That Modi Govt Rejected TN Tableau For R-Day

He also misreported that the Modi government rejected Tamil Nadu’s Republic Day tableau for not featuring prominent freedom fighters, though the selection process is based on an expert committee’s recommendations.

He had peddled fake news that the Modi Government at the Centre had ‘rejected’ Tamil Nadu’s tableau for the Republic Day Parade for not having ‘prominent freedom fighters’ while the fact is that each year only limited number of tableaus from states are selected based on the recommendations of an expert committee appointed by the Ministry of Defence. Tamil Nadu’s tableaus were selected in 2016, 2017, 2019, 2020 and 2021, far more than many other states.

10.Peddled Fake News That BJP Candidate Uma Anandan Lost By 8 Votes

In February 2022, the alleged ‘journalist had peddled fake news against BJP candidate of Ward No. 134. Uma Anandan, saying that she had lost by securing just 8 votes while she emerged as a winner with 5635 votes.

11.Falsely Linked Hemant Soren Arrest To Cancelled Flights

He falsely linked the arrest of Hemant Soren and alleged horse-trading of Jharkhand MLAs to cancelled flights, claiming it was a BJP conspiracy. He suggested that JMM was attempting to move MLAs to another state due to inclement weather. However, fact-checking organization Only Truth debunked his claim, explaining that the flight cancellations were due to heavy fog disrupting services for over 20 days. Reports from reputable outlets corroborated this, but Kumar continued to justify his false narrative. Netizens mocked his misrepresentation of the facts and his political motives.

12.Made Fake Claims About HP’s Education System

In January 2024, Niranjan’s claim about spending two days in Manali and making statements about the state’s education system was debunked by data, revealing that even Manali had a higher literacy rate compared to Tamil Nadu. His assertions about better facilities in the state were contradicted by the state’s move to seek donations for school development and concerns over the use of Hindu temple funds for schools. The deplorable condition of government model schools in the state’s capital highlighted the deterioration of the education system.

13.Tried To Stoke Controversy In Parliament Security Breach

In December 2023, Niranjan, posing as a journalist, sought to stoke caste-based animosity by spotlighting the name “Sagar Sharma” in connection with the Lok Sabha security breach. By emphasizing Sharma’s surname and linking it predominantly to Brahmins, he aimed to escalate caste tensions surrounding the incident.

14.Peddled DMK Narrative On ‘Thamizhagam’ Controversy

In January 2023 witnessed Niranjan contributing to the misrepresentation of Tamil Nadu Governor RN Ravi’s statements. The governor’s call for using “Thamizhagam” instead of “Tamil Nadu” was distorted by certain media outlets, including alleged journalist Niranjan, leading to the trending of separatist tweets with the hashtag #தமிழ்நாடு.

15.Tried To Blame BJP For Rameshwaram Cafe Blast

Niranjan Kumar falsely reported that BJP member Sai Prasad had been arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in connection with the Rameshwaram cafe explosion in Bengaluru. Kumar claimed Prasad was involved with suspects linked to the blast, citing unverified sources and insinuating the BJP’s connection to terrorism. This narrative was widely spread by Congress and other Dravidian media outlets, including Sun News and Kalaignar News, fueling regional tensions.

However, the NIA clarified that Prasad was only summoned as a witness due to his prior connection to a mobile phone purchased by an arrested suspect. The phone was used by one of the main suspects, but there was no evidence linking Prasad to the blast itself. Kumar’s misleading claims were debunked, but the narrative continued to be propagated by partisan media, fueling misinformation.

16.Peddled Fake News That FM Nirmala Sitharaman Refused To Meet TN CM

In 2021, he was also called out for spreading misinformation about Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s refusal to meet Tamil Nadu’s CM EPS. He had stated that the Minister had refused to meet Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami citing budget consultation work.

Subscribe to our channels on Telegram, WhatsApp, and Instagram and get the best stories of the day delivered to you personally.