BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma alleged last evening that she had been receiving death and rape threats after a self-styled fact-checker tweeted portions of a video showing her making remarks on Islam’s prophet, Mohammed (Muhammad ibn Abdullah). Sharma claimed that Mohammed Zubair, co-founder of communist-leaning fact-checking website Alt News, posted a “heavily edited video” from one of her debates, saying he would be “wholly & solely” responsible “if anything untoward happens to me or any of my family members”.
“There is a so-called fact-checker who has started to vitiate the atmosphere by putting out a heavily edited and selected video from one of my debates last night. Ever since I’ve been receiving death and rape threats, including beheading threats against me and family members,” Nupur Sharma told news agency ANI.
Yesterday, Zubair had tweeted an 86 s clip from a debate on a television news channel on the Gyanvapi mosque case in which Sharma can be heard making a remark on Prophet Muhammad’s marriage, which has been controversial through the ages, as some historians have over the centuries found the prophet to be paedophilic while others have given him a clean chit, saying that the tender age of one of his wives at the time of consummation of the marriage was the norm in the 7th century Arab society — much as Islam’s present is driven by the claim that the 7th century belief system is forever modern.
After Nupur Sharma tagged Delhi Police, accusing Zubair of inciting “communal passions”, the most prolific of Alt News staff members said he was sure the police would register an FIR against the BJP spokesperson if they see the full video.
“Thanks for tagging @CPDelhi @DelhiPolice, If they happen to see the full video, I am sure there will be a sou moto FIR registered against you for inciting communal violence by sitting on a news debate and giving hate speeches targetting a religion,” he wrote.
Subsequently, Nupur Sharma posted screenshots of some tweets and said she was getting continuous death and beheading threats against her and her family because of Zubair’s “attempts to incite communal passions and vitiate the atmosphere by building a fake narrative.”
Delhi Police replied from its official Twitter handle, saying, “The matter has been forwarded to the concerned officials for necessary action. You will be contacted shortly.”
Did Nupur Sharma defame Mohammed or is it history?
What Nupur Sharma said in the course of the controversial debate is backed by Sahih Bukhari, considered one of the most authentic retellers of Mohammed’s life and time among all Ahadith (plural of a Hadith). The contentious marriage by the prophet was with Aisha (Āʾisha bint Abī Bakr), Mohammed’s third and youngest wife. Sahih al-Bukhari’s hadith says, “… the prophet married her when she was six years old and he consummated his marriage when she was nine years old”. [7:62:64]
The topic was deemed so distinctly important by Wikipedia that it made an article “Criticism of Muhammad” separate from the main piece on Islam’s prophet.
The question whether Prophet Mohammed was a paedophile, which Nupur Sharma raised, is a hot one on social media platforms. The issue has been debated since the era of Orkut, the first networking site that became big in India besides the United States and Brazil. The following is a screenshot from Quora.
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