Pakistan Defence's Twitter account suspended for posting morphed photo of Indian girl

HIGHLIGHTS

• Pakistan Defence's Twitter handle had posted an image of a young woman standing in front of Delhi's Jama Masjid with a placard reading: "I am an Indian but I hate India..."
• Indian netizens complained to Twitter that it was a doctored version of a photo shared by DU student Kawalpreet Kaur with the message: "I am a citizen of India and I stand with secular values of our constitution."

On Saturday suspended the official account of Pakistan Defence, a forum dedicated to the country's military affairs, for tweeting a morphed photo of an Indian girl to promote its anti-India rhetoric.
Earlier in the day, Pakistan Defence's verified Twitter handle @defencepk had posted an image of a young woman standing in front of Delhi's Jama Masjid with a placard reading: "I am an Indian but I hate India, because India is a colonial entity that has occupied nations such as Nagas, Kahmiris, Manipuris, Hyderabad, Junagarh, Sikkim, Mizoram, Goa."
However, eagle-eyed Indian netizens who noticed the post cried foul and pointed out that it was a doctored version of a photo shared by Delhi University student Kawalpreet Kaur. In the original image, the placard held by Kaur bears the message: "I am a citizen of India and I stand with secular values of our constitution."

23h

Naila Inayat

✔@nailainayat

True story, there goes the Defence of Pakistan. pic.twitter.com/HV4K9bwpUm

Naila Inayat

✔@nailainayat

Other than running malicious campaigns against several Pakistani journalists/activists, defencepk was also morphing photos to further its propaganda: pic.twitter.com/qK7ZLQM29G

10:02 PM - Nov 18, 2017

 

     

         

Pakistan Defence had deleted the tweet some time later, but after receiving numerous complaints about the morphed photo, Twitter suspended the account, and it is still offline as of today.

Kawalpreet Kaur @kawalpreetdu

The account of @defencepk has been suspended by twitter for posting my unverified & morphed pictures. Grateful to all who reported it in large numbers. The message of the picture shouldn't be lost in these dark times. No nation wants lynchings & killings. Only bigots wants hate.

8:51 PM - Nov 18, 2017

Pakistan Defence, which has no links to the country's government, claims to be the "one stop resource for Pakistan defence, strategic affairs, security issues, world defence and military affairs."

This is what Pakistan Defence minister does as a Minister... Instead of Protecting the nation from Internal Threats.. Good job Mate.. You guys finally became certified Laughing Stock :-)Mahantesh Torgal

This isn't the first time that Pakistan has used a falsified narrative to tarnish India's image. In September, Pakistan's Ambassador to the United Nations Maleeha Lodhi, in her right to reply to External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj's speech at the UN, showed the photo of a wounded Palestinian girl and tried to pass it off as evidence of atrocities in Kashmir.

India had hit back at Lodhi's attempt to mislead the UN by describing it as "the nefarious designs of Pakistan on India" to divert attention from its role as the hub of global terrorism.