A case has been filed against Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Member of Parliament (MP) Tejasvi Surya and the editors of several Kannada news portals for allegedly spreading fake news regarding the suicide of a farmer in Haveri district. The police have taken action after the MP shared a post on social media linking the death to land disputes involving the Waqf Board, which was later debunked by local authorities.
On November 7, Tejasvi Surya, representing Bengaluru South, shared an article from Kannada news portals on the platform X (formerly Twitter), claiming that a farmer, Rudrappa Channappa Balikai, had died by suicide after discovering his land had been taken over by the Waqf Board. Surya also took the opportunity to criticise the state government's handling of minority affairs, alleging that the administration's actions were causing unrest in Karnataka.
The post was later deleted after it was revealed that the claims were unfounded. Haveri district Superintendent of Police (SP) clarified that the suicide of Rudrappa Channappa Balikai had occurred on January 6, 2022, but was unrelated to any Waqf Board land dispute. The SP confirmed that the cause of the suicide was due to financial pressures from crop loss and outstanding loans. A final report under Section 174 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) had already been submitted, and there was no new investigation into the case.
"The news shared by Tejasvi Surya is completely false," the SP said in a statement. "No such incident was reported, and the information presented is misleading."
In response to the spread of fake news, the Haveri district police registered a case under Section 353(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for publishing or circulating statements intended to promote hatred, ill-will, or enmity between different groups. The case was filed following a complaint from an official working in the social media monitoring cell of the Haveri district police.
In addition to Surya, the editors of two Kannada news portals, Kannada Dunia and Kannada News, have also been named in the FIR for their role in disseminating the fabricated report.
The incident has sparked political controversy, with opposition parties accusing the BJP MP of attempting to stoke communal tensions through misinformation. The case is now under investigation by the Cybercrime, Economic Offences, and Narcotics (CEN) police in Haveri.
This development has raised concerns about the growing influence of social media in spreading misinformation and its potential to disrupt public peace and harmony.
