At a time when the two months old anti-CAA agitation has instigated massive riots and horrifying violence in Northeast Delhi, there is a sustained campaign by the anti-CAA lobby to escape culpability and pin the entire blame on BJP leader, Kapil Mishra.

All of them, from Barkha Dutt to Javed Akhtar, have tweeted against Mishra. Dutt tweeted, “Head constable of Delhi Police Ratan Lal dies as violent clashes escalate between pro and anti #CAA protesters in North East Delhi. Horrifying news. And a day after ultimatum by Kapil Mishra that all protests have to be cleared or else.. Whoever responsible must be arrested now.”

Javed Akhtar too has tweeted against Kapil Mishra, blaming him for the protests. Elitist journalists too have come out demanding the arrest of Mishra. Posting videos of violence, the entire anti-CAA lobby is targeting the BJP leader in a planned manner.

Head constable of Delhi Police Ratan Lal dies as violent clashes escalate between pro and anti #CAA protesters in North East Delhi. Horrifying news. And a day after ultimatum by Kapil Mishra that all protests have to be cleared or else.. Whoever responsible must be arrested now — barkha dutt (@BDUTT) February 24, 2020

the level of violence is being increased in Delhi . All the Kapil Mishras are being unleashed . An atmosphere is being created to convince an average Delhiite that it is all because of the anti CAA protest and in a few days the Delhi Police will go for “ the final solution “ — Javed Akhtar (@Javedakhtarjadu) February 25, 2020

Just arrest this low life goon terrorist #KapilMishra .He is such a blot to our country.

Just take this scum away #ArrestTerroristKapilMishra https://t.co/YfmDfKqeOV — Sakshi Joshi (@sakshijoshii) February 24, 2020

However, what they have failed to do is to point out a single statement/ remark by Kapil Mishra in the run up to the Delhi Assembly Elections in the spur of the moment that could have contributed to the riots.

While Kapil Mishra is being blamed for the riots, what these so called intellectuals have concealed is how slogans like “ye jo dehshatgardi hai, uske peeche vardi hai (There is uniform behind terrorism)”, which have been raised by the anti-CAA lobby ever since the CAA was passed in Parliament and there were instances of CAA opponents clashing with the police.

Sheer hostility has been created against the police on the basis of rumours and fake news. When on Monday, a Delhi Police Head Constable died due to bullet injuries and an anti-CAA rioter, identified as Shahrukh, was spotted firing at the police- it became the real point of escalation, and things just spiralled out of control.

More than Kapil Mishra, it is such rumour mongers and fake news peddlers who have contributed to riots in Northeast Delhi. It is beyond comprehension why Manish Sisodia is not being blamed for spreading fake news against Delhi Police during the Jamia violence in December last year.

While Kapil Mishra is being blamed for statements which only the anti-CAA lobby finds provocative, men like AAP MLA Amanatullah have mobilised people with more incendiary statements than this.

Far more provocative were the remarks of Waris Pathan when he said, “Now the time has come, we are told that we have sent our mothers and sisters in the front and were sitting covered in blanket… Only our lionesses have come out and you are already sweating. Understand what will happen if we come together. (We maybe) 15 crore, but are heavy on 100 (crore), remember it.”

It is much more likely that Pathan’s remarks could have triggered riots in Delhi, or for that matter, even Sharjeel Imam’s exhortations to the Muslim youth to create large scale ‘disturbance’ in Delhi to grab the attention of international media could have been the immediate cause for the sudden upsurge in violence that the National Capital has witnessed.

Who is Kapil Mishra anyway? He was a Minister in the Kejriwal cabinet and left AAP over ideological issues. He remained partyless for a while and finally joined the BJP. He contested the recent Assembly polls from the Model Town constituency and lost.

But the entire left liberal ecosystem is now projecting him as some sort of an omnipotent leader. It appears as if Kapil Mishra is the man responsible for everything from the 1989 Kashmiri Pandit exodus to the Godhra train carnage and now the Northeast Delhi riots. The outrage against him is beyond sanity.

This is exactly what has led to a massive outpouring of support for the BJP leader and the anti CAA lobby has incidentally made a hero out of him.

When the Delhi Police cleared protest sites, Kapil Mishra naturally came to the mind of social media users. Mishra was the one carrying out pro-CAA rallies against the anti-CAA protests and roadblocks.

And while Kapil Mishra is being blamed, many of the videos of riots narrate a completely different tale. The provocation is not one of the kind that could have come from Kapil Mishra’s remarks.

This video of Shaheen Bagh protests show how kids were being indoctrinated ever since the enactment of CAA. This indoctrination, not Kapil Mishra, has left parts of Delhi burning.

Here is another video of ⁦@KapilMishra_IND⁩ threatening violence when he was 6 years old. #IStandWithKapilMishra pic.twitter.com/voXtb37sfM — Mukul Sharma 🇮🇳 (@mukkulsharma) February 25, 2020

Shehzad Poonawala has in fact put it bluntly and correctly. Taking on those criticising Delhi Police and Kapil Mishra, he said, “‘Original sin’ began nearly 2 months ago with the Shaheen Bagh protest.” He also questioned why no action is being demanded against those who have been unnecessarily making a Hindu-Mislim issue out of the CAA for the past two months.

Totally avoidable and unnecessary criticism against Kapil Mishra and attempts to create a bogeyman out of him have thus ended up making a living legend out of the BJP leader.