India Today cover in news again

India Today is on a roll. At least, when it comes to staying in news owing to its cover photographs. After pulling off an inverted Baba Ramdev on the cover of its English edition, its Hindi edition (July 20) photoshopped Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s face over a Nihang warrior for its cover on AAP’s foray in Punjab. While the ‘AAP ki Lalkaar’ cover hasn’t generated a meme-fest on Twitter, it has attracted two police complaints.

Soon after the release of the cover last week, Majinder Singh Sirsa, general secretary of Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee and Advisor to Deputy CM, Punjab, gave a statement to the press – “Keshas (unshorn hair) are the inseparable part of every practicing Sikh but presenting any person in traditional Sikh dress in clean-shaven form; is blatant insult to the established Sikh traditions and customs,” reported Punjab Spectrum. He blamed both Kejriwal and India Today magazine and has submitted a criminal complaint demanding the registration of an FIR against both of them under section 295A (which pertains to hate speech) of the Indian Penal Code. In response to Sirsa’s press statement, Sucha Singh Chotepur, the Punjab convenor of Aam Aadmi Party, said Kejriwal was equally troubled with the magazine and that the Badals were making an issue out of nothing to malign the party’s image.

India Today, on its part, released a clarification on its website apologising for hurting religious sentiments. Meanwhile, Kejriwal seems to believe that the magazine’s cover is part of a larger conspiracy against him in which India Today is supporting his political rivals, Akali Dal and Congress. He wrote to Delhi Police Commissioner Alok Kumar stating that his image had been photo-shopped for the cover without his permission and also urged the commissioner to file a criminal case against the magazine. Talk about extreme reactions. While India Today’s aesthetic sense may not find favour with many, dubbing it a conspiracy seems to be a bit of a stretch. Specially since bad photoshopping has become somewhat characteristic of its cover photos.