India Today NE, a news outlet published from India’s northeastern province has apologised for a report claiming Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was airlifted amid violent clashes in Dhaka.
“India Today NE sincerely apologises for this unintentional error and regrets any confusion or tension it may have caused in our neighbouring country,” the newspaper wrote on its website after the Bangladesh High Commission in New Delhi protested the report.
It added that being a “respected news publication, we remain committed to journalism that is both factual and ethical”.
The Bangladesh High Commission in India refuted the accuracy of a report published in India Today NE on 21 July with the title “Indian students flee Dhaka amid violent clashes, PM Sheikh Hasina airlifted”.
The newspaper also shared on India Today NE’s social media platforms.
The high commission said this kind of misinformation and reporting based on rumour at the time of such a critical moment in any country may misguide the people and even add fuel to the crisis and turn the situation into more chaos.
Moreover, such kind of reporting, without gauging the sensitivity, does not only affect the people and the society at large negatively, but also questions the credibility of any news outlet.
