The city of Udaipur has been gripped by tension following the death of a 15-year-old boy, Devraj Mochi, who succumbed to injuries after being ‘allegedly‘ stabbed by his classmate, Ayaan Sheikh, at a government school. The incident, which has resulted in communal unrest, took place on 16 August 2024 and has led to widespread violence and a significant security clampdown in the city.
Background
Devraj, a class 10 student at Government Senior Secondary School in Bhatiyani Chauhatta, Udaipur, was stabbed with a knife during a heated exchange on school premises by his classmate allegedly named Ayan Khan and sustained severe injuries. He was rushed to Maharana Bhupal Government Hospital, where he battled for his life in the intensive care unit under the supervision of a team of specialists from Jaipur. After four days in critical condition, Devraj passed away on Monday, 19 August 2024.
BREAKING: The Udaipur Hindu kid, who was brutally stabbed multiple times by Ayan Khan, has succumbed to his injuries after fighting for his life for three days.
Ayan Khan had stabbed him inside the school premises. After the outrage and vandalism, his house was bulldozed. https://t.co/YTKjysMTNT pic.twitter.com/Mtkj88RzMB
— Treeni (@TheTreeni) August 19, 2024
The news of his death triggered immediate unrest across Udaipur. A large crowd gathered at Mukherjee Nagar Chowk and marched to the hospital, demanding justice and access to the boy. Protests quickly escalated, with mobs taking to the streets, setting vehicles on fire, and attacking properties, including a shopping mall. The situation prompted the district administration to impose Section 144, banning public gatherings and suspending mobile internet services to restore order.
In response to the tragedy, the local government in Udaipur announced a compensation package of ₹51 lakh for Devraj’s family and promised a government job to a family member. However, this announcement has done little to soothe the aggrieved Hindu community, which feels deeply affected by the incident.
Bulldozer Action
Authorities demolished the rented house where Ayan Sheikh’s family lived, which was reportedly constructed illegally on Forest Department land. The 15-year-old accused has been detained under the Juvenile Justice Act.
Devraj’s funeral, held on Tuesday under tight security, saw a large turnout of people expressing their grief and anger. The procession, which started from his home, was accompanied by senior district officials, and chants demanding justice for Devraj echoed throughout the city.
How The Wire Peddled Its Narrative
Leftist mouthpiece The Wire went overboard with their reporting – they downplayed the murder as an ‘injury‘ and the focus of the report was on the bulldozer action on Khan’s home.
The headline read, “‘Is This Justice?’: Muslim Auto Driver’s House Bulldozed After Tenant’s Minor Son Injures Classmate“ while inside the article, it says, “The dispute between the minor accused (a Muslim) and the minor victim (a Hindu) – both students of class 10 – had turned communal after Hindu outfits staged massive protests.“
According to them.this is injury pic.twitter.com/Q4HAfJLNQF https://t.co/ago2k05vZR
— PR #MATSOut (@Messismm) August 20, 2024
This is an insult to the victim, his family, and the Hindu community. A young life was lost due to an unprovoked and violent attack. Yet, instead of calling out the mentality of the Islamist classmate, The Wire’s framing of this murder as a mere injury is a blatant attempt to diminish the severity of the crime, as if it were a minor altercation.
While the demolition of the house where the accused lived is undoubtedly a significant event, The Wire’s disproportionate focus on this aspect of the story seems like a deliberate attempt to divert attention from the core issue—the brutal murder of a teenage boy. Instead of prioritising the crime, The Wire has highlighted the demolition, framing it as an unjust act against the homeowner, Rashid Khan, who purchased the house in 2019. The article dedicates considerable space to detailing Khan’s financial losses and the hardships faced by tenants while the horrific nature of the murder is downplayed.
Furthermore, The Wire criticises the authorities for demolishing the house because it was illegally constructed on forest land, questioning why the demolition occurred only after the incident. However, the same article fails to hold the accused’s family accountable for their illegal occupation of the land, instead portraying them as victims of a draconian government action.
The Wire’s ‘Illustrious’ History Of Peddling False Narratives
The Wire, run by NRI Siddharth Varadarajan, has been indulging in peddling a certain anti-Hindu, anti-India narrative since its inception. Columnists at The Wire, like Ajai Shukla, published a fake report on US drone sales to India and linked it to Pannun’s “assassination conspiracy.”
In October 2022, The Wire released a controversial article claiming that ShareChat’s parent company Mohalla Tech Pvt. Ltd is involved with Tek Fog, and both were engaged in sharing news favourable to the BJP; ShareChat has released a statement asking the media house to take down the previously disputed articles. Earlier that month, on 10 October 2022, The Wire had published a story in which it alleged that BJP IT Cell Head Amit Malviya can get any social media post on Facebook or Instagram taken down because Meta had given him special privileges. Meta rubbished this allegation.
Siddharth Varadarajan’s wife, a US citizen named Nandini Sundar, who also works as a professor at Delhi University, blamed Israel for Hamas terrorist attack in October last year.
An ‘independent journalist’ made false claims about SBI electoral bonds earlier this year, and The Wire peddled the same propaganda.
The Wire’s columnists are of a separate type – they indulge in all kinds of uncivilised behaviour – Ravi Nair made derogatory comments about PM Modi.
One columnist named Natasha Narwal was booked for inciting the Delhi riots.
Arfa Khanum Sherwani repeatedly makes pro-Muslim (read anti-Hindu) comments and peddles Islamist propaganda through The Wire, ably aided by her boss Varadarajan – they downplayed the attacks against Bangladeshi Hindus. They claimed that they were ‘safe‘ and that the claims were ‘baseless and stupid’.
In such times, the media is responsible for reporting the truth, not manipulating it. As always, The Wire’s coverage of this incident falls woefully short of that standard.
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