By Avdhesh Kumar& Nikita Singh / News Laundry
Hindi daily Dainik Jagran seemed to have the story of the year in its Tuesday morning edition. The headline of its lead story on the front page screamed “Bharat ne Pakistan par fir ki surgical strike”, translating to India unleashes surgical strike again on Pakistan.
The strap carried prodigious details: About 12-15 Indian army soldiers, on foot, had crossed into Kotli in Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir – nearly 2.5 km beyond the Line of Control from Rajouri and Poonch districts on the Indian side. They had attacked a terrorist camp, killed seven to eight terrorists, destroyed four of their launching pads, and returned unscathed.
“Bharatiya sena ne ek baar fir dushman ko uske ghar mein ghus kar maara hain…,” began the news report by Gagan Kohli, using colloquial lexicon. It said the Indian army had once again assaulted the enemy at their home, and “this time our bravehearts” had crossed over to Pakistan to “completely destroy four launching pads of active terrorists”.
These claims read like a story of fabled military warfare. Sadly, it drew a quick denial from the army. The government’s fact-check machinery, PIB Fact Check, also asserted the army’s stance, tweeting, “Yah dawa galat hain.” (This claim is false.)
This story was originally published in newslaundry.com. Read the full story here