Who is Neha Singh Rathore, booked over ‘provocative’ Pahalgam attack posts?

An FIR was registered on Sunday against folk singer Neha Singh Rathore at a police station in Uttar Pradesh's Lucknow for sharing “objectionable” content on social media regarding the recent Pahalgam terrorist attack that killed 26 people.

Authorities said her posts, described as “provocative”, targeted a specific faith community following the Pahalgam tragedy and could potentially threaten the nation's unity, according to PTI news agency.

Poet Abhay Pratap Singh, a resident of Gudamba, Kursi Road, lodged the complaint at Hazratganj police station.

"In this situation, singer and poetess Neha Singh Rathore, using her Twitter (now X) handle @nehafolksinger made some objectionable posts that can adversely affect the national integrity and made repeated efforts to incite one community against another based on religion," the complainant, Abhay Pratap Singh, said.

Following the complaint, police booked Rathore under multiple sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including charges related to promoting communal disharmony, disturbing public peace, and endangering India's sovereignty, unity, and integrity. She has also been charged under provisions of the Information Technology Act, police added.

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Meanwhile, Rathore posted a video on her social media platform X, stating, “BJP’s IT cell is calling me anti-national because some Pakistani social media handle copied my video. 14 members of my family have served in the Indian Army and paramilitary forces. My brother is fighting Naxalites in Chhattisgarh and my uncle fought in the Kargil war.”

Who is Neha Singh Rathore?

• Born in 1997 in Bihar’s Kaimur district, Neha Singh Rathore claims on her social media profiles that she is "fighting to restore the honour" of Bhojpuri music through her folk songs. Neha Singh Rathore grew up in Bihar's Jandaha and completed her Bachelor of Science degree from Kanpur University in 2018.
• She launched her YouTube channel in May 2020 to highlight the plight of migrant workers during the Covid-19 lockdown.
• Neha Singh Rathore rose to fame in 2022 with her song ‘UP Mein Ka Ba’, which followed the success of ‘Bihar Mein Ka Ba’ in 2020. She has been married to writer Himanshu Singh since 2021.
• Through her folk music, Rathore focuses on social issues like unemployment, corruption, dowry, and politics, aiming to preserve Bhojpuri tradition against the rise of 'sleazy' film songs.
• In July 2023, she faced controversy after a case was filed against her for posting a caricature related to the Madhya Pradesh urination incident, where a man was seen urinating on a tribal labourer. Earlier in February 2023, Kanpur Police served her a notice for allegedly inciting hatred through the second version of her song ‘UP Mein Ka Ba’.
• Neha Singh Rathore is known for her songs such as 'Bihar Mein Ka Ba' (2020), 'UP Mein Ka Ba?' (2022), 'UP Mein Ka Ba? Session-2' (2023), and 'MP Mein Ka Ba?' (2023), which gained significant traction on social media.
• Her work often highlights governance issues, including the Covid-19 crisis, the Lakhimpur Kheri violence, and the Hathras gang rape case.