BJP leader Kapil Mishra sat down for two separate interviews with anti-Hindu news media outlets BBC and the Wire on the first anniversary of the Northeast Delhi riots, which were planned by the likes of Sharjeel Imam, Umar Khalid, Tahir Hussain and other Islamists at a time when the then President of the United States, Donald Trump was on a state visit to India. The sole motive of the interviewers was to project Kapil Mishra as the prime instigator of the Northeast Delhi riots last year. However, both the Wire and BBC spectacularly failed in their endeavour, as Kapil Mishra took to thrashing the living daylights out of them.
Kapil Mishra was straightforward, unapologetic and batted on the front foot when faced with traps masqueraded by the alleged journalists as questions. Of course, the interviewers were not operating on their own and were mere puppets of the editorial higher-ups in such organisations sent to interview Mishra with only one mandate – depicting him a Muslim hater who instigated riots against the community last year.
Kapil Mishra did not extend any such luxury to the interviewers, however. The Wire was rather shameless in its line of questioning. When Mishra was asked whether it was right to call all Muslims ‘terrorists’ (as if that is up for debate), the BJP leader ripped into the agenda-laced question, and said, “Now listen to this answer very carefully. Nobody is speaking against Muslims. Neither is anyone saying that all Muslims are doing something incredibly wrong. Then what is the problem? The problem is that Muslims are being lied to by some people and vested interest groups, such as their community is about to be picked up and disenfranchised, following which they will all be put into detention camps.”
Mishra then went on to say, “You, the Wire are the problem! You are the root cause of the problem. You lie through your teeth, saying that CAA will lead to Muslims losing their citizenship, and then give examples of detention camps and Hitler.”
When asked that the BJP has also been fighting with opposition parties when it was in their position, Kapil Mishra ripped into the whataboutery and said that BJP had never waged an international campaign against the country, nor did it bring in the likes of Mia Khalifa and Rihanna to interfere in India’s internal affairs. He went on to say that the BJP has never defamed India, and mobilised crowds to protest outside the Indian embassies across the world and vandalise them.
One of the Wire’s enthusiastic reporters then tried to ‘educate’ Mishra with an alleged story from the times of the emergency. During the emergency, Mishra said, the constitution was suspended and fundamental rights were trampled upon. “Will you sell white lies sitting here?” Mishra hit out saying.
“You are abusing the country and roaming freely. You are delivering speeches against India and roaming freely. Is this Emergency?” he added.
When asked by both the BBC and the Wire as to whether Kapil Mishra was working to provide relief to only Hindu victims of the Northeast Delhi riots, the BJP leaders proudly admitted to the same, saying that the Delhi government was providing relief via the Waqf Board, which was working for the benefit of only one community it is mandated to look after. Hindus were left in the lurch, and it was, therefore, Kapil Mishra and Samaritans like him who took to proving relief to them.
Interestingly, the BBC and Wire’s questions were eerily similar. However, Kapil Mishra thrashed both the publications left, right and centre. The media outlets must be of the impression that they would be able to trap Mishra in a web of moral low-grounds. However, none of their tactics bore fruit, and they were forced to pack up without any favourable outcome.