amarnathkvk
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In August 2015, a video went viral. Not extraordinary really. In the age of social media, videos being shared by hundreds and thousands of people is just a regular day's work. But this one was different because it was misleading. Actually misleading is trying to sugarcoat it. It was just baseless and put into a wrong context.
The video showed a policeman who was supposedly drunk in the Delhi Metro. The policeman fell and had to be helped to get up, by other people. By virtue of it's virality, the video got shared with the caption "drunk cop on metro". It turned into an outrage. And eventually the policeman got suspended from duty.
The truth couldn't be further from that. The policeman in question had apparently suffered a stroke, which caused his fall and gave the ignorant recorder the illusion of drunkenness. Everyone shared that video with anger and disgust, including us. We channeled all our hatred towards the system and corrupt cops on this one fellow who happened to be caught out of context.
50-year-old Salim PK, head constable at the Civil Lines police station, fell victim to this odd social media trial. Salim now seeks compensation for the hardship he faced due to his suspension from duty and also for all the embarrassment he suffered because of his false internet 'notoriety'. He is also trying to get the video removed from the internet and plans to make sure there exists a legal provision for curbing this kind of social media abuse.
We at IBNLive.com apologize for running the story purely on the basis of the video. I personally apologize for not having confirmed the facts. It is a matter of shame. I'm not trying to make an excuse but such is the fickle nature of a viral video. We all chose to not question the basis or the context because we see so many people sharing it. It is this social media herd mentality that needs to be put in check.
How social media misjudged an unwell policeman to be a 'drunk' on the metro - IBNLive
The video showed a policeman who was supposedly drunk in the Delhi Metro. The policeman fell and had to be helped to get up, by other people. By virtue of it's virality, the video got shared with the caption "drunk cop on metro". It turned into an outrage. And eventually the policeman got suspended from duty.
The truth couldn't be further from that. The policeman in question had apparently suffered a stroke, which caused his fall and gave the ignorant recorder the illusion of drunkenness. Everyone shared that video with anger and disgust, including us. We channeled all our hatred towards the system and corrupt cops on this one fellow who happened to be caught out of context.
50-year-old Salim PK, head constable at the Civil Lines police station, fell victim to this odd social media trial. Salim now seeks compensation for the hardship he faced due to his suspension from duty and also for all the embarrassment he suffered because of his false internet 'notoriety'. He is also trying to get the video removed from the internet and plans to make sure there exists a legal provision for curbing this kind of social media abuse.
We at IBNLive.com apologize for running the story purely on the basis of the video. I personally apologize for not having confirmed the facts. It is a matter of shame. I'm not trying to make an excuse but such is the fickle nature of a viral video. We all chose to not question the basis or the context because we see so many people sharing it. It is this social media herd mentality that needs to be put in check.
How social media misjudged an unwell policeman to be a 'drunk' on the metro - IBNLive
