Rhode Island has not recognized 'Kashmir Genocide', viral claims are false
Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri, the filmmaker of 'The Kashmir Files' tweeted that the US state of Rhode Island has officially recognized the 'Kashmir Genocide' through a citation for his film.
By Newsmeter Network Published on 17 March 2022 10:00 AM GMT
HYDERABAD: Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri, the filmmaker of 'The Kashmir Files' tweeted that the US state of Rhode Island has officially recognized the 'Kashmir Genocide' through a citation for his film. (view here)
Agnihotri shared a picture of a citation by the Rhode Island House of Representatives on March 14, 2022, and claimed that the 'democratic and liberal state' of Rhode Island has officially recognized the 'Kashmir Genocide' because of his film.
Several media outlets have also reported on the filmmaker's tweet. The headline of the Times Now News report reads, "Rhode Island officially recognizes Kashmir genocide, says director of 'The Kashmir Files'. (View here and here)
The 2022 'The Kashmir Files' film is a historical film that is based on video interviews of the first generation victims of the Genocide of the Kashmiri Pandit Community in 1990.
FACT CHECK:
Upon close observation at the citation tweeted by Agnihotri, NewsMeter noticed that the citation was "in recognition of the premiere of The Kashmir Files, detailing terrorism and extremism by memorializing the events of 1990 in which 500,000 Kashmiri Hindus were ethnically cleansed in the Kashmir Valley by Islamic Gangs and forced to live like refugees."
The citation was issued on 9 December 2021 and is the recognition for the premiere of the movie in Rhode Island and not an official acknowledgment by the House of Representatives of the "Kashmir Genocide" as claimed by Agnihotri.
Independent journalist Raqib Hameed Naik from Kashmir called out Agnihotri's tweet. Hameed Naik tweeted that he reached out to Representative Brian Kennedy, the member who proposed the citation. Kennedy told him that the citation was given to simply recognize the premiere of the movie at Rhode Island College and not for a "Hindu genocide in Kashmir".
In the statement given by Brian Kennedy to Hameed Naik, Kennedy said: "The citation from the State was to simply recognize the premiere of this movie. I have not met the director nor was I present to view the movie, although I have seen scenes of the movie that were provided to me in advance of the showingā¦This citation was strictly given to the movie director for the premiere of his movie. it is nothing more and it is NOT an endorsement of the State of Rhode Island and the House of Representatives."
NewsMeter reached out to Hameed Naik, who forwarded the email response received from Kennedy. The statement mentions that the citation is "NOT an endorsement of the State of Rhode Island and the House of Representatives." The email trail verified that the mails were sent by Rep. Kennedy's official email address.
The claim made by Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri that Rhode Island has officially recognized the 'Kashmir Genocide' through a citation for his film is false.
