BJP Leader Charged For Tweet About "Killing Of Bihar Migrant Workers"

A case has been filed against a BJP leader from Uttar Pradesh for spreading rumours on social media about the "killing" of Bihar migrant workers in Tamil Nadu.

An editor of a newspaper and owner of a local daily have also been named separately by the Tamil Nadu for spreading enmity and a police team has been formed to arrest them, officials said. 

Sharing a photo of Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav with Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin, Prashant Umrao, who is the spokesperson of the Uttar Pradesh unit of the BJP, had put out a tweet that "12 migrants from Bihar were hung to death in Tamil Nadu for speaking in Hindi". 

Mr Umrao had said that despite the attacks on migrants, the Bihar leader attended the birthday celebrations of Mr Stalin. 

The tweet has since been deleted. 

The Tamil Nadu Police has charged Prashant Umrao for creating enmity between the people on the basis of region and language. It also registered a case against the editor of Dainik Bhaskar and Patna-based journalist Mohammad Tanvir for spreading enmity and provoking riots. The police said Dainik Bhaskar projected the murder of a Bihar man by a man from Jharkhand as an attack on north Indian workers.

In the past week, several fake messages have been shared on WhatsApp about attacks on migrant workers from Bihar in the southern state, prompting the state government in Tamil Nadu and Bihar to issue a warning against such messages. 

Chief Minister MK Stalin has issued a statement assuring the safety of migrant workers in the state. "Migrant workers need not fear. If anyone threatens you, call on the helpline. Tamil Nadu government and people will stand to protect our migrant brothers," he said. 

District Collectors in Tamil Nadu have issued appeals in Hindi asking migrant workers not to be scared. 

The police in both states are closely keeping an eye on social media to check rumours about attacks on migrant workers. 

The Bihar government has also sent officers to Tamil Nadu to meet migrant workers along with local officials, sources in Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin's office told NDTV.