On Wednesday, Maharashtra government has initiated action against Times Now TV channel, for running a false news about Cabinet Minister Jitendra Awhad and his daughter as being tested positive for COVID-19.
Maharashtra Home Minister, Anil Deshmukh, took on twitter to inform that a news channel ran false report that Jitendra Awhad’s daughter was tested positive and action will be taken against such news channel for running false news.
कायद्यानुसार सुध्दा मुलींचं नाव जाहीर न करण्याचे नियम आहेत. गैर जबाबदारपणे बेछूट हेतूपुरस्सर या वृत्तवाहिनीने जे केलं ते अत्यंत गंभीर आहे.
देशाभरात कोरोना संसर्ग व प्रादुर्भावामुळे भीतीचं वातावरण असताना घब्राट पसरवणाऱ्या खोट्या बातम्या दाखवणं खूपच चुकीचं आहे.— ANIL DESHMUKH (@AnilDeshmukhNCP) April 15, 2020
This came after Jitendra Awhad wrote a lengthy blog on Facebook speaking about the news report which Times Now had run about his daughter. On Wednesday, Jitendra Awhad, Housing Minister, Maharashtra released his coronavirus test report, which came negative, after some media reports claimed that he had tested positive.
मला माफ करा मी हरलो…@supriya_sule @PawarSpeaks@AUThackeray @Jayant_R_Patilhttps://t.co/aMyE5rMi6u
— Dr.Jitendra Awhad (@Awhadspeaks) April 15, 2020
On Wednesday, Awhad had tweeted: “I am fit and fine… Working on streets… But some channels using me for TRP… Interesting to know that they think people watch this also. Undoubtedly, I was exposed for over a month… God is kind who are kind to others.”
This not the first time Maharashtra government has taken action against a news channel for running fake news. On Wednesday, a TV journalist was arrested for spreading misinformation about resuming of railways, which led to a huge gathering of migrant labourers outside Bandra railway station on Tuesday. The reporter, Rahul Kulkarni, was detained in Osmanabad in Marathwada region, where he is based, and brought to Mumbai where he was arrested.
