Delhi Police files case against Greta Thunberg over her tweets on farmer protests

Delhi Police on Thursday filed a case against teen climate activist Greta Thunberg accusing her of “criminal conspiracy and promoting enmity on grounds of religion” over her tweets on the farmer protests near Delhi. Thunberg had tweeted in support of the farmers protesting against the new farm laws in India.

“We stand in solidarity with the #FarmersProtest in India,” Greta Thunberg had tweeted, sharing a news article of the CNN about the protests and the government restricting Internet near protest sites.

Her tweets, among other tweets by celebrities have drawn international attention to the farmers’ agitation that began late-November near Delhi, and continues. Apart from Thunberg, pop star Rihanna too has tweeted on the issue leading to widespread reaction across the country.

Perhaps as a “reaction” to the Delhi Police case, Thunberg tweeted: “I still #StandWithFarmers and support their peaceful protest. No amount of hate, threats or violations of human rights will ever change that. #StandWithFarmers”

Greta Thunberg had also shared a “toolkit” advising people on showing support to the protests. She had however, deleted a similar “toolkit” she had posted with information on support to farmers on Republic Day last week. On Thursday, she said she was posting an updated list. Among other things, Greta Thunberg suggested organising protests near the closest Indian embassy on February 13 and 14.

The Centre on Wednesday had reacted to these international tweets (perceived to be a reaction to Rihana and Greta Thunberg’s tweets among others) issuing warning against “temptation of sensationalist social media hashtags and comments” and said the protests were by “a very small section of farmers” in parts of India. Many Bollywood stars and cricketers in India have shared similar reactions on their personal Twitter accounts supporting the government’s position and reactions to the international attention.