On August 23, BJP leader T Raja was arrested by the police for his comments on the Prophet Muhammad. Earlier, influencer and former AIMIM social media chief Syed Abdahu Kashaf led slogans of ‘sar tan se juda’ against Raj. While Raja has been arrested for “hurting religious sentiments”, Kashaf roams free despite threatening and opposing Raja.
Who is Syed Abdahu Kashaf?
Syed Abdahu Kashaf is a graduate of Jawaharlal Nehru University and works as a digital content creator at Crimson Media Company. According to his online profile, Kashaf worked as the social media head of AIMIM and its chief Asaduddin Owaisi between 2012 and 2019.
Kashaf calls himself a political strategist and social and civil rights activist. The “young and energetic” political strategist has been branded an “influencer” by several media houses after he issued death threats to BJP’s T Raj. Interestingly, the more people tagged and condemned him with ‘sar tan se juda’ slogans, the more he enjoyed the comments and gleefully retweeted posts that were against him.
A blunt and unforgiving attitude does not arise by itself. A person shows such an attitude only when he is sure that no one can touch him. Recent incidents including the Nupur Sharma incident where former BJP spokesperson had to hide from public view due to remarks she made during a debate, murders that happened just because the victims supported Nupur Sharma, no strong action against the likes of Munawar Faruqui, Mohammed Zubair and another panelist Rehmani who provoked Sharma are several reasons why anti-social elements like Kashaf boldly issue death threats openly. Even past incidents such as when Akbaruddin Owaisi was acquitted by a court in a case due to his provocative speech in which he demanded the removal of the police for 15 minutes have supported such a stance.
Here are some posts we came across on Kashaf’s social media accounts.
On August 22, Kashaf rounded up hundreds of Islamists following T Raja’s alleged derogatory remarks against the Prophet Muhammad. During the protest, he gave slogans of ‘sar tan se juda’ and provoked Muslims against T Raja. A video of the speech he delivered has gone viral on social media platforms. Not only did he post videos from his social media accounts, he also retweeted posts that shared the video of him raising “sar tan se judo slogans” and condemning it. The open display of an ‘I don’t care’ attitude shows that he knows no one will come after him.
On August 20, he shared a photo with controversial comedian Munawar Faruqui, who used derogatory language against Bhagwan Ram and Mata Sita. He smiled at the encounter and said, “Reminder: This is #Hyderabad not Bhagyanagar! Outsiders and hate mongers have no place here. Welcome Munawar Faruqui to our city. Kudos to the organizers, Azhar Bhai and Nisar. Most importantly, I thank you Commissioner of Police Cyberabad CP Stephen Raveendra Sir IPS for keeping faith in the police.
In July 2020, Syed happily informed his supporters that he was arrested under Sections 153, 504 and 505(2) of the Indian Penal Code for using derogatory remarks against PM Modi and HM Shah.
In February 2020, he attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying “When Modi gets scared, he hides behind impotent”.
In January 2020, as protests against the CAA mounted, Syed published disinformation that the central government was fanning anti-minority sentiments. Calling PM Modi a liar, he said, “Prime Minister Narendra Modi, you are a liar, you have divided the nation by introducing CAA, your representatives are speaking anti-minority language. Did you even condemn the killing of 25 innocent people who were peacefully protesting for democratic rights? You’re a fool, we hate you.”
In December 2019, he shared a highly derogatory video of an old lady from Hyderabad who was clearly misinformed about the CAA and NRC.
Crimson Media, a company founded by Syed
In March 2020, Syed left AIMIM as a political strategist and started his own company called Crimson Media Co 2021. According to the company’s profile, he assists clients in creating political strategy and provides a range of services including campaign design, surveys, opinion polls and other services. and more.
If you look at the company’s blogs, it clearly paints a picture that the company is looking for anti-BJP and anti-Modi clients. His experience with a party like AIMIM and posts that openly provoke Muslims are a clear indication of what to expect from the campaigns Crimson will design for the client.
While people like Syed Abdahu Kashaf, Mohammed Zubair of Alt News, alleged comedian Munawar Faruqui, controversial influencer Faizu and others walk freely even after provoking Muslims, insulting Hindus and indulging in anti-India activities, Hindus are either hiding (Nupur Sharma), to save their lives or have already died (Kanhaiya Lal, Umesh Kohle, Kamlesh Tiwari) trying to stand for Dharma.