After Gujarat ATS arrested Maulana Mufti Salman Azhari for an incendiary video that had gone viral on the internet, an Islamic gang that backed the hate merchant jumped to his defence on social media. They claimed that the video that is doing the rounds on social media was edited out of context by Hindu nationalists in an attempt to defame the Maulana. They argued that Azhari had merely spoken about Palestine, not targeting any community.
This gang also includes Mohammad Asif Khan. On social media site X, Mohammad Asif, who has 93.4 thousand followers, posted in support of Mufti Salman Azhari on Monday (4th February 2024). He shared a video (archived link) of Azhari, 1 minute 34 seconds long, claiming it was a conversation about Palestine and Muslim countries. Asif alleges that the Hindu IT cell cropped the video and painted a community as the target with false claims. He also used hashtags in support of Salman Azhari. As of now, the video has garnered over 262,000 views.
Here is the full video of Mufti Salman Azhari.
— Md Asif Khan (@imMAK02) February 4, 2024
He was talking about Palestine and Muslim countries,and then he recited a couplet.
Hindutva IT cell cropped his video and circulated it with false claim that he targeted a community.#ReleaseSalmanAzhari#IStandWithSalmanAzhari pic.twitter.com/ydNkq5FMXn
After these allegations surfaced, numerous other social media posts emerged, asserting that an edited version of the Maulana’s speech was being circulated online. However, upon investigation, it became apparent that this assertion is unfounded. Contrary to claims, it was discovered that it was not Hindu nationalists but rather Islamists who had edited the clip.
Mohammad Asif and others allege that Hindu nationalists are deliberately sharing only a segment of the clip to tarnish their image. However, the truth is that they have chosen to circulate the same clipped video, pinning the blame on Hindus. They have conveniently omitted any provocative statements made by Mufti in the longer version of the video.
Full video of Mufti Salman Azhari.👇
— Ahmad Waseem 💡 ( وسیم فیضی) (@Wassu92) February 4, 2024
He was talking about Palestine and Muslim countries,and then he recited a couplet.
Hindutva IT cell cropped his video and circulated it with false claim that he targeted a community#IStandWithSalmanAzhari#ReleaseSalmanAzhari pic.twitter.com/ZzyFjH0asB
They deliberately shared a video that doesn’t include the instance where the Maulana refers to Hindus as ‘infidels’—a term pejoratively used for describing non-Muslims.
The instance of Maulana Mufti Salman referring to Hindus as ‘infidels’ deliberately edited
At 1:04 in the unedited video, you can hear Mufti mentioning ‘infidels.’ Then suddenly the clip cuts to “…if we are getting entangled every day, now there is still the final field of Karbala…” Where the cut is made, Mufti Salman Azhari addressed Hindus provocatively. His words were, “These oppressive infidels, who do they think they are?”
Md Asif is complaining about ‘Hindutva IT cell cropping the video’, but here’s an interesting thing.
— Meghalsinh Parmar 🇮🇳 (@MeghalHparmar) February 6, 2024
There is a cut at 1:04 in the video he has posted. Exactly where Azhari has said- “Ye Zaalim Kaafir Kya samajte hai!”
Bahut Krantikari! https://t.co/I7tEYWkSzW
In the videos shared by Mohammad Asif and the gang, the part mentioning ‘infidels’ is deliberately removed while they blamed Hindus for sharing a clipped video to malign the Maulana. The truth, however, is that the gang themselves selectively shared the clip.
It should also be noted that the clip Mohammad Asif shared is not the ‘complete speech.’ The entire speech was about 53 minutes long, available online. In the speech, he made many other provocative statements, which can be read in detail here.
