RIGHTWING TV ANCHOR ROHIT SARDANA DIES OF COVID, PM MODI SAYS “HUGE VOID IN MEDIA”

Fri 30 April 2021:

Television journalist and senior anchor Rohit Sardana died of Covid on Friday, leaving journalists and others who knew him shocked and heartbroken.

Rohit Sardana was with Aaj Tak and anchored a popular show ‘Dangal‘ that featured debates on current affairs.

He earlier worked with Zee News, where he used to host the debate-based show ‘Taal Thok Ke‘.

He was awarded the Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi Puraskar by the government in 2018.

Tributes poured in for the popular anchor from the media fraternity as well as politicians, including ministers.

“Rohit Sardana left us too soon. Full of energy, passionate about India’s progress and a kind hearted soul, Rohit will be missed by many people. His untimely demise has left a huge void in the media world. Condolences to his family, friends and admirers. Om Shanti,” tweeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Rohit Sardana left us too soon. Full of energy, passionate about India’s progress and a kind hearted soul, Rohit will be missed by many people. His untimely demise has left a huge void in the media world. Condolences to his family, friends and admirers. Om Shanti.

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 30, 2021

“Pained to learn about Shri Rohit Sardana ji’s untimely demise. In him, the nation has lost a brave journalist who always stood up for unbiased and fair reporting. May God give his family the strength to bear this tragic loss. My deepest condolences to his family and followers,” Home Minister Amit Shah tweeted.

Pained to learn about Shri Rohit Sardana ji’s untimely demise. In him, the nation has lost a brave journalist who always stood up for unbiased and fair reporting. May God give his family the strength to bear this tragic loss. My deepest condolences to his family and followers.

— Amit Shah (@AmitShah) April 30, 2021

Senior India Today journalist and anchor Rahul Kanwal paid homage to his colleague in moving tweets.

“Rohit Sardana was the sharpest young anchor I have met. Superb command over Hindi, brilliant with his turn of the phrase, precise questions, clear in his thinking, loved by the masses, warm and humble off the screen, he was destined for great things. Our newsroom is in deep shock,” he wrote.

‘Anti-Muslim’ image

AajTak journalist Rohit Sardana sparked a massive row last year December, while talking on the issue of farmers’ protests during a live question and answer session with viewers. During the session, a man named Shaukat Ali tried to get a reaction from the journalist about the ongoing farmers’ agitation.

This is the face of @aajtak and @IndiaToday. There are many like him on their payroll. pic.twitter.com/T9V8SUAgGe

— Pratik Sinha (@free_thinker) December 11, 2020

In 2017 several Muslim groups have filed police complaints against Sardana for his tweet disparagingly referring to women in Islam and Christianity including Prophet Muhammad’s( peace be upon him) wife Ayesha, daughter Fatima and Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ.

अभिव्यक्ति की आज़ादी- फ़िल्मों के नाम सेक्सी दुर्गा, सेक्सी राधा रखने में ही है क्या? क्या आपने कभी सेक्सी फ़ातिमा, सेक्सी आएशा या सेक्सी मेरी जैसे नाम सुने हैं फ़िल्मों के? https://t.co/OkMFNz0AQE

— रोहित सरदाना (@sardanarohit) November 16, 2017

In 2018, Sardana spewed communal bile while reporting on the Kasganj violence in Uttar Pradesh between Hindus and Muslims over the hoisting of the tricolour following a “tiranga yatra”. According to Alt News, Sardana played up the fictitious angle of Muslim aggression against Hindus. On his show, he asked, “When will the government crack down on anti-nationals of Kasganj” and “If not in Hindustan, then will tricolour be unfurled in Pakistan?”.

In August last year, Sardana falsely claimed in a segment that 40 Chinese soldiers had been killed during the Galwan clashes between India and China a few months before. He broadcast a video of a cemetery in China, claiming that it housed the remains of Chinese soldiers killed by the Indian troops. The cemetery, located in Kangxiwa town in Aksai Chin, actually contained the graves of Chinese soldiers who were killed in the Sino-Indian war in 1962.

In November 2020, Sardana told his viewers that India had done “another airstrike on Pakistan’s terrorists”. This never happened, as the Press Information Bureau clarified on Twitter.

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