Mumbai Editor Now Wears Burqa, Is In Hiding After Death Threats For Publishing Charlie Hebdo Cover
Shireen Dalvi, India's only female editor of an Urdu daily, was arrested and released on bail, but is still receiving death threats and facing multiple police investigations.
Shireen Dalvi, the editor of the Mumbai edition of Lucknow-based Urdu daily Awadhnama, is on the run after publishing an image of a Charlie Hebdo cover the week after the terror attack in Paris.
Multiple reports stated that a dozen FIRs have been filed against her in Mumbai, Thane, and Malegaon, "for outraging religious feelings" with "malicious intent" under Section 295 A of the Indian Penal Code.
The Mumbai Mirror reported that Dalvi, along with her children, has been on the run and has been receiving death threats since the image was published on page one.
First Post reported that Dalvi has been wearing a burqa while in public to avoid being recognized by the communities she inadvertently offended.
Like most news organizations at the time, Awadhnama was reporting news about the horrific attack in Paris, and Dalvi had meant to include the latest issue of Charlie Hebdo as an illustration to go along with the story.
However, the Mumbai Mirror reported that she mistakenly added an old cover, which portrayed an old bearded man in tears, covering his face and stating, "It's hard to be loved by idiots" with the accompanying headline "Muhammed overwhelmed by fundamentalists".
"It was a clear news story. If you write about the terror attack on Charlie Hebdo, you also need to publish a relevant picture with it. That image has been printed in the Indian media in several places, but I am being singled out," Dalvi said to The Indian Express.
The report goes on to clarify that since Dalvi did not know any French, she didn't understand what was written on the illustration.
The backlash following the publication of the image resulted in Dalvi issuing a front page apology. However, weeks later, complaints had been launched at various police stations, the Mumbai branch of the publication had been shut down, and 15 employees were let go.
Dalvi was subsequently arrested, and released on a bail of Rs. 10,000 from Mumbra. She will face another interim bail plea at the Bombay High Court on February 4.
"Why am I being harassed even after publishing a front-page apology?" she asked. "Facing the community again has become a great concern for me as there is still a lot of unrest. I have avoided showing my face in Muslim-populated pockets. I have not gone back to my house (in Mumbra) since the protest started," she explained to The Indian Express.
Dalvi has continued to receive death threats, and has stated that she hasn't gone back to her home since this began.