Was Mahua Moitra's Maiden Speech in Lok Sabha Copied From Martin Longman's Article? Author Clears Air
Political commentator Martin Longman denied that TMC MP Mahua Moitra lifted content from his article for his maiden speech in Lok Sabha.
New Delhi, July 3: Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Mahua Moitra stole the limelight with her maiden speech in the Lok Sabha last week. In her fiery speech, Mahua Moitra pointed out that "all the signs of early fascism" were visible in the country under the Modi government. After the video of her speech went viral, a section of media accused the TMC lawmaker of plagiarism.
A section of media and many on Twitter alleged that Moitra lifted content of her speech from Martin Longman's article titled "The 12 Early Warning Signs of Fascism" which was published in Washington Monthly in 2017. Martin Longman, in his article, made a case against Donald Trump and highlighted that his presidential campaign had almost all signs of the arrival of a fascist regime in the United States. Mahua Moitra of TMC Takes Internet by Storm After Fiery Maiden Speech in Lok Sabha.
As the news spread that Moitra allegedly plagiarised content from Longman's article, the author put a tweet and denied it. "I’m internet famous in India because a politician is being falsely accused of plagiarizing me. It’s kind of funny, but right-wing assholes seem to be similar in every country," Longman said in a tweet. Moitra also cited his tweet to dismiss reports that her Lok Sabha speech was her thoughts. Highlights of Narendra Modi's Reply to Motion of Thanks on President's Address in Lok Sabha: Jabs Opposition, Recalls Emergency, Lauds Electorate.
Mahua Moitra's speech and Martin Longman's tweet:
In her maiden speech, Moitra attacked the Narendra Modi government on several issues and spoke of dissent and "signs of fascism" in the country. Her 10-minute long speech in Parliament was shared on the social media with several Internet users praising her for keeping the dissent alive despite a clear majority mandate for the BJP in the Lok Sabha Elections 2019.
Fact check
Mahua Moitra's maiden speech was copied from Martin Longman's article.
Marin Longman denied that Mahua Moitra plagiarised his content.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 03, 2019 06:26 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).