The Wire, founded in 2015 by Siddharth Varadarajan, has emerged as a controversial news outlet accused of consistently peddling anti-Bharat and anti-Hindu narratives. Over the years, the platform has gained notoriety for its role in spreading misinformation, often with an apparent bias against the government and Hindutva ideologies. While masquerading as an independent news source, The Wire has been implicated multiple times in propagating falsehoods and sensational claims, undermining public trust in institutions and fueling communal tensions.
One of the most striking examples of The Wire’s misinformation campaign surfaced during the 2024 Maharashtra Assembly elections. The outlet alleged a discrepancy of over 500,000 votes in the electoral count, insinuating that the BJP’s victory was orchestrated through electoral fraud. These claims were promptly debunked by the Maharashtra CEO, who provided detailed evidence confirming the accuracy of the vote tally, including postal ballots. Such baseless reporting not only questions the integrity of Bharat’s electoral process but also sows seeds of distrust among citizens towards constitutional authorities.
This pattern of biased reporting aligns with The Wire’s history of spreading fake news to shield extremists and malign Hindus and the government. A compilation of 31 documented incidents reveals the outlet’s role in creating polarizing narratives that support anti-national elements while vilifying others. Even more damning, on several occasions, The Wire has admitted to publishing false reports, further eroding its credibility. This report aims to expose these instances of fabricated news and analyze the motives behind the outlet’s agenda.
Timeline of misinformation: The Wire’s persistent propaganda
A detailed timeline of fake news propagated by The Wire showcases its continuous efforts to push divisive narratives, often targeting Hindus and promoting anti-national sentiments. The pattern begins as early as February 15, 2019, when The Wire shared an article that downplayed an objectionable social media post by an Islamist student regarding the Pulwama terror attack, an incident that shook the nation. A day later, on February 16, 2019, The Wire attempted to polish the actions of Islamist students at NIMS University, Rajasthan, who celebrated the martyrdom of Bharatiya soldiers. These incidents marked the beginning of a series of deliberate misinformation campaigns seemingly aimed at creating communal discord and shielding extremist actions under the guise of journalism.
Most recently, on November 25, 2024, The Wire falsely claimed voter discrepancies in the Maharashtra Assembly elections, alleging over 5,00,000 additional votes were counted to favor the BJP. This baseless assertion was debunked by the state’s Chief Electoral Officer, who confirmed the accuracy of the voting process, including postal ballots. Another significant example occurred on October 10, 2024, when Founding Editor M.K. Venu falsely claimed that 19 lakh EVMs had gone missing, further fueling distrust in Bharat’s democratic institutions. The timeline of such incidents underscores The Wire’s consistent attempts to propagate anti-Hindu and anti-national rhetoric, presenting a clear agenda of misinformation cloaked in the garb of journalism.
Propaganda 1
Based on the reports from OpIndia, in the 2024 Maharashtra Assembly elections, The Wire alleged that there was a mismatch of 5,04,313 additional votes counted compared to the votes polled, insinuating that the BJP’s victory was a result of electoral rigging and casting doubts on the credibility of the constitutional process. However, this claim was unequivocally debunked by the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Maharashtra, who confirmed that the total votes counted, including postal ballots, amounted to 6,45,92,508, aligning perfectly with the total votes polled. Specifically, the valid postal ballot votes from the Ashti and Osmanabad Assembly constituencies were 4,538 and 4,155, respectively, disproving any claims of excess votes and highlighting The Wire’s baseless attempt to undermine public trust in the electoral system.
Propaganda 2
In October 10, 2024, The Wire journalist and founding editor M.K. Venu alleged that 19 lakh EVMs were missing during the Haryana Assembly elections and accused the Election Commission of failing to provide a satisfactory explanation. Based on the reports from Only Fact, this claim, however, is entirely false. The Election Commission had addressed similar allegations as far back as May 2019, explaining that EVM transportation is managed through a robust Election Management System (EMS) that tracks EVMs in real time. Only EVMs cleared through a First-Level Check and logged into the system are used for polling. Moreover, during the 2024 general elections, the Supreme Court dismissed the “missing EVMs” plea, labeling it a baseless accusation. The Wire’s claim was thus a deliberate attempt to undermine public confidence in India’s electoral integrity.
Propaganda 3
Based on the reports from OpIndia, on May 25, 2024, The Wire claimed that there was a dip of 19.4 crore voters in the first five phases of polling in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections compared to the 2019 polls. The Wire stated that 70 crore votes were polled in the first five phases of the 2019 elections, while only 50.7 crore votes were polled in the first five phases of the 2024 elections. However, this claim is misleading. The actual comparison is not valid, as the total number of eligible voters and the voting process in each election are influenced by various factors such as population growth, voter turnout, and other logistical elements. A direct comparison of vote counts without considering these factors is inaccurate, and The Wire failed to provide context for these disparities.
Propaganda 4
On January 6, 2024, The Wire published a report claiming that the BJP was using an app to manipulate trends and automatically spread hate online, alleging that the party was using a software called Tek Fog, led by BJP leader Devang Dave. Based on the reports from OpIndia, this claim was based on an August 2020 tweet and some unnamed sources. However, this accusation is false. On October 23, 2022, The Wire had to suspend its previous fake Tek Fog story, initially published in January 2022 by Ayushman Kaul and Devesh Kumar. In their statement, The Wire admitted that they could not verify the supposed capabilities of the app and that they had never seen the actual app. Furthermore, they acknowledged that the story was part of an ongoing internal investigation, which had failed to substantiate the claims made.
Propaganda 5
On March 2, 2024, The Wire falsely claimed that Bharat ranks first globally in fake news. In a video published on The Wire’s YouTube channel, former NDTV anchor Priyanshi Sharma stated, “India is the number one country globally, not in GDP, employment or health indicators, but in fake information.”She cited the 19th edition of the Global Risk Report, published by the World Economic Forum (WEF) on January 10, 2024, to back her claims.
However, upon reviewing the source and report by OpIndia, it was found that The Wire misrepresented the report. The 124-page Global Risk Report 2024 did not state that Bharat topped the list of countries in fake information. Instead, the report highlighted that misinformation and disinformation remain significant challenges for several poll-bound nations, including Bangladesh, Bharat, Indonesia, Mexico, Pakistan, the United Kingdom, and the United States, without singling out Bharat as the leader in fake news.
Propaganda 6
based on the reports from News Bharati, on September 1, 2023, The Wire published a report claiming that the family of martyred BSF jawan Ranjit Yadav had not received any compensation. The article, written by Yaqut Ali, suggested that the family was being neglected despite the tragic loss. However, this claim was false. The fact-checking arm of the Press Information Bureau (PIB) rebutted this misinformation, confirming that the family of BSF personnel Ranjit Yadav, who was killed in action in Manipur, had already received the Rs 16 lakh compensation, as guaranteed under the ‘Golden Jubilee Seema Prahari Kalyan Kavach Yojana.’
Propaganda 7
On January 16, 2023, The Wire claimed that a poster had been pasted in Delhi’s Brahmpuri, urging Hindus not to sell their houses to Islamists. The report alleged that the posters were put up by advocate Pradeep Sharma. However, this claim was quickly debunked. Advocate Sharma denied any involvement, stating that he was unaware of the content of the poster and had no connection to it. He expressed his frustration over being falsely implicated, saying, “I am unaware how my statement appeared in The Wire. I have no idea how The Wire reported this against me. Whatever The Wire has written, they are not my words, and I did not give any interview.”
Propaganda 8
On October 1, 2022, The Wire journalist Arfa Khanum Sherwani tweeted claiming that Hindutva fascists were mocking, discouraging, threatening, and even beating up Islamists who wished to participate in the celebration of Hindu festivals, accusing them of destroying Bharat’s composite culture. based on the reports from Dainik Bhaskar, however, this narrative was misleading and distorted. The truth is that in Garba pandals across Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh, several Islamist youths were caught changing their names and entering the pandals. Once inside, they were involved in inappropriate behavior, including molesting Hindu girls. In response, Hindu organizations and local administrations took action to prevent further illegal infiltration, conducting investigations to protect the sanctity of the events. Sherwani’s tweet misrepresented these incidents and flipped the context, ignoring the fact that it was the Islamist youths’ actions that led to intervention, not any form of victimization by Hindu groups.
Propaganda 9
On July 1, 2022, The Wire published a story claiming that a three-year-old child stated that the police had shot his maternal grandfather. However, this claim was entirely false. The reality was that 65-year-old Bashir Ahmed Khan was tragically killed by terrorists. At the time of the incident, Bashir Ahmed was on his way to the market with his three-year-old grandson. After being shot, his bloodied body fell on the road, and the child was left sitting on his dead grandfather’s body. The terrorists, not the police, were responsible for this horrific attack.
Propaganda 10
On June 2, 2022, The Wire published a report about the violence in Delhi’s Jahangirpuri, quoting local sources claiming that the Islamic community was migrating from the area and that the police were harassing innocent Islamists for extorting money. However, an investigation by OpIndia debunked these claims. The report highlighted that, contrary to The Wire’s assertions, there was no mass migration or police harassment. The location where The Wire suggested there was fear of bulldozers was found to be an area where junk was being loaded and unloaded without any intervention from authorities. Furthermore, activity around the mosque, from which Hindu organizations had previously claimed stone pelting would begin, was ongoing, and all nearby shops were open, disproving the narrative of widespread fear and harassment.
The Wire has repeatedly been involved in publishing misleading and false narratives under the guise of journalism, making it evident that the portal often operates with an agenda rather than journalistic integrity. Another glaring example of this is its series of articles targeting Bharat Biotech and Covaxin, where it made baseless allegations about the vaccine’s authorizations and approvals. These claims were later debunked, with the Ranga Reddy District Court in Telangana ordering the removal of 14 defamatory articles against Bharat Biotech on February 23, 2022. The court criticized the publication for spreading misinformation that could fuel vaccine hesitancy, especially when Covaxin was the only vaccine approved for the 15-18 age group at the time.
Other examples include exaggerated claims about election irregularities, misrepresentation of communal incidents, and the dissemination of unverified information about sensitive national matters. These actions reveal an alarming disregard for journalistic ethics, focusing instead on creating divisive and sensationalist content that undermines trust in institutions and fuels public unrest. By repeatedly pushing such fake agendas, The Wire has shown itself to be more of a propaganda outlet than a credible media organization. It is imperative to hold media platforms accountable to ensure that they uphold truth and objectivity, rather than indulging in anti-national and unethical practices.
