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The co-founders of the Indian fact-checking website AltNews, Pratik Sinha and Mohammed Zubair, have been “relentlessly" combating misinformation in India, TIME reported. Sinha and Zubair have called out hate speech and methodically-disproved myths and false information spreading on social media.
In response to a meme Zubair shared four years prior, Indian officials detained him in June. The detention was denounced by journalists all around the world, who said it was punishment for his fact-checking work, according to TIME.
While producing Mohammad Zubair before the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate of Patiala House Court, Delhi Police's lawyer said, "We have arrested him as he was not cooperating during the investigation. When he joined the probe, all apps were deleted from his phone; it was blank."
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In addition, Delhi Police said that Zubair had deliberately formatted his phone and had declined to cooperate with investigators in their case against him because of an "objectionable" tweet, which was grounds for his detention. The tweet allegedly hurt religious sentiments.
“It is apparent that AltNews’ alert vigilance was resented by those who use disinformation as a tool to polarize the society and rake nationalist sentiments," TIME quoted a June 28 statement from the Editors Guild of India.
The list of candidates put out by Norwegian MPs also includes environmental activist Greta Thunberg, Pope Francis, Simon Kofe, the minister of foreign affairs of Tuvalu and the National Unity government of Myanmar.
