Rajdeep Sardesai taken off air by India Today for two weeks over tweet about farmer’s death
New Delhi: Senior Journalist and anchor Rajdeep Sardesai has been taken off the air by India Today for a tweet wherein he had claimed that the farmer who was killed during a tractor rally in the national capital on Republic Day had died in police firing.
According to The Wire, Sardesai who is also consulting editor of India Today will be off the air for two weeks. The channel has also deducted a month’s salary from Sardesai. The anchor however refused to comment on the development, the report added.
In a tweet, Sardesai had said that farmers had told him the protestor was shot at. “One person, 45-year-old Navneet killed allegedly in police firing at ITO,” he wrote. “Farmers tell me: the ‘sacrifice’ will not go in vain.”
On Tuesday evening, the journalist also went live on India Today and said that the death of the farmer “would result in this rally becoming a big movement across the country”, according to The Wire.
However, the Delhi Police released a video shot at the ITO area in which a tractor can be seen crashing into a barrier and overturning. Hours after this video was released, Sardesai retracted his statement.
“While the farm protestors claim that the deceased Navneet Singh was shot at by Delhi police while on a tractor, this video clearly shows that the tractor overturned while trying to break the police barricades,” he wrote on Twitter. “The farm protestors’ allegations don’t stand. Postmortem awaited.”
Additionally, in his live coverage at 5.47 pm on January 26, Sardesai said, “What we do know is that while the farm protesters that we met insist that the person who died named Navneet Singh was shot at, but the police has provided us with a video that shows very clearly that the tractor overturned,” according to The Wire.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Injured Phil Salt returns home for scans
New Delhi (PTI): Royal Challengers Bengaluru opener Phil Salt has returned to England for scans on a finger injury sustained last month.
The injury has kept Salt out of RCB's last three matches, with compatriot Jacob Bethell stepping in at the top of the order.
The 29-year-old is reported to have "damaged a finger on his left hand" while diving to save a boundary at deep backward square leg during RCB's defeat to Delhi Capitals at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium on April 18.
"Salt, who is centrally contracted by the ECB, has since returned home at the request of England's management and has undergone scans on his finger," ESPNCricinfo reported.
According to the report, both RCB and Salt are hopeful of a speedy recovery and the opener can return to India later this month.
Salt had enjoyed a strong start to the season, amassing 202 runs in six innings at an impressive strike rate of 168.33.
RCB are currently second on the points table behind Punjab Kings. They take on Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) on Thursday next.
