By Editors
Update (May 7, 2025): A court in Uttar Pradesh on Tuesday (May 7) dismissed the criminal case filed against folk singer Neha Singh Rathore
Popular Bhojpuri singer and satirist Neha Singh Rathore reacting to the terror attack in Pahalgam on 22 April, 2025 that left 26 persons dead and several injured, posted a video on the social media platform ‘X’. For raising questions on the attack, and asking what steps the government had taken to ensure the safety and security of citizens, she was slapped with criminal charges for “acts endangering the sovereignty, integrity and unity of India.” On the eve of World Press Freedom Day, Rathore speaks to NWMI member & Founder of Shades of Rural India Neetu Singh on why she felt compelled to speak out, despite the backlash on social media and facing criminal charges.
Full translation of the interview:
I get my power from the Constitution. Freedom of expression is my fundamental right: Neha Singh Rathore
Neetu Singh (NS):
You have been going viral on social media for the past few days because an FIR has been filed against you in the Pahalgam terror attack. I want to know from you: who is Neha Singh Rathore, where does she come from, where does she belong, tell us a little about yourself?
Neha Singh Rathore (NSR):
I am from Bihar, Bhabua district. In Ramgarh, which comes under the Ramgarh police station area. Jandha is a very small village. I come from a small village in Bihar and I am a very simple girl and I am married in Uttar Pradesh. I write songs, sing, write political satires, ask questions to the government, face FIRs, insults, hurt and abuses on Twitter social media.
NS:
And after this, you have been reading a lot of comments on social media in the past few days, you keep hearing a lot of things, but the way comments are being made on you in the last few days, you can say that you are being mentally tortured. How do you handle it?
NSR:
It becomes very difficult to handle but the good thing is that this is not the first time this has happened to me. I think that now I have become very bold, very confident. I have been tolerating this for the last five years. I can say this whether it is during UP Mein Ka Ba or UP Mein Ka Ba Part 2 when I sang when the DM sahab ran a bulldozer on the Dixit family in Kanpur Dehat and after that an FIR was filed. When the government is unable to answer my questions, it sends its troll army after me and tells me to go away because I am a girl, it is very easy to discourage girls. You are also a woman. You must know that men are trolled in a different way. Women because they feel that the people of the house will tell what are you doing, like my mother has received many calls today. She was worried about what is happening, people are abusing me and my mother too. People abuse my mother and sister. And I don’t know about me, they have spread some hostel scandal that I am from the hostel scandal. Obscene photos and then one day Mia Khalifa made me trend. They said that my glasses match with some porn star. Then one day I see that my photo and another photo of some porn star. What happens by photoshopping anything like this, the problem is felt when the mechanism of social media and this attitude of BJP IT cell, those who understand, they understand what is happening, the people of villages don’t know. When these things reach them, they feel sad. Things and they believe as if now this case of treason is fine. The lawyer sahab will also process it further. Everything thing will happen, everyone knows that there is no issue at all. But I feel that those people who are from my village, who will only know one news, will not know the other news because internet is not working there, so they will not be able to hear the full news. So they will feel that she is a traitor. They try to conspire against me, so it hurts a lot. But yes, mentally a lot of people get disturbed. Gradually I am becoming very stubborn and confident. I can also say this, but it does bother. No matter how much someone says that it is okay… it happens, one gets disturbed.
NS:
We saw on your social media that since the day the FIR was filed against you because of the video, even after that you have been continuously making videos and your tendency to ask questions has become stronger. Now you are constantly asking questions in different ways. You have shared a video asking should I resign? I am the Home Minister. How is this possible, I mean how are you able to do it?
NSR:
This is possible because firstly, we live in India, a democratic country. In fact, today I was thinking that in a democratic country, how did the government become so arrogant that it started scaring the public? It should be afraid of the public, right? How did you become so arrogant? We have put you where you are sitting, you come to ask for our votes, where you say that each vote is important, I am also one vote, so, how can you scare me? Or you tell me that now democracy has no meaning. I feel that brother, questions are asked in democracy, so we are asking. This power comes to me from the constitution and I know that freedom of expression is my fundamental right, so I am asking you questions. I have not done anything that is treason or something very bad.
NS:
How do you view the FIR filed against you? Why was it filed? From which angle?
NSR:
Well, one more thing that I want to tell you is that whatever I shared on my Twitter, videos etc., a Pakistani Twitter handle picked it up and shared it, so I say that there is no limit to social media, it is public. Now someone shared my video in London, someone shared it in America, someone shared it in Pakistan. It is not my fault. I have no control over it. The second thing is that it is very popular in Pakistan. It is becoming very famous in Pakistan, so in Pakistan, people like Virat Kohli a lot. People are liking Mahendra Singh Dhoni a lot and liking Sachin Tendulkar or Lata Mangeshkar ji, I was just seeing another thing. Yes, Sania Mirza has even got married. You never told her that she is a traitor and this is another thing. The Prime Minister goes to eat biryani. Anurag Thakur ji, there is a Pakistani cricketer who keeps on spewing venom about India every now and then, maybe Afridi is his name. If I am not saying anything then it’s all fine if you people do it. If something happens to me then he is a traitor, a traitor. I have no connection with Pakistan, so some people say that I have someone. Maybe today I was seeing some MLA from Ghaziabad. He said that I am an agent of ISI. He told me that I am an agent. Such big things, people are saying anything in such a hype. The seriousness of this matter will end. Are you able to understand?
NS:
Absolutely.
NSR:
I feel bad seeing all this, that I have no control over what is happening. Well one more thing and maybe last year only that song was going viral, some Pakistani girl was dancing, Bheega Bheega hai Samaan, you people were very happy, it was becoming viral in India, so what? If any content from Pakistan goes viral in India then you enjoy it a lot, so what about the content, anything can go viral on social media, anything can go viral anywhere, anyone can share it. We have no control over this and I did not go to that handle to tell them to go and share my video. He had shared Medusa ji’s video as well and Shankaracharya ji’s video as well. He had shared two-four other Indian Twitter handles and also shared people’s videos, FIR was filed against me and Medusa ji, so anyway.
NS:
Because of the video, an FIR has been filed against you and it is being said that you are a traitor. This is tarnishing the image of the country. Do you think that there is something like that in the video?
NSR:
I keep speaking my views on my platform, your audience, who is a bigger judge than the public? I would like to ask them that you tell me and go and listen to my video carefully and do not listen to half of it. Listen to the entire video, it is not that you hear one line from somewhere, you hear something from somewhere. See the entire video as to what I have said, everything is available on my Twitter handle, YouTube channel, Facebook page. You listen and judge and tell me what wrong have I said, if I have said something wrong then put me in jail, is that it?
NS:
On one hand it is being said that this is not the time to question the government, but the time to stand with it. You have continued to ask questions, why did you think so?
NSR:
Asked questions. Many people are also saying that what is your locus standii? Will you ask questions to the Prime Minister? Well, to ask questions to the Prime Minister, do I have to become the Prime Minister? What locus is needed? Yes, we talk about locus, only then we talk. You understand that this is my locus, this is my Aadhar card. I have a voter ID card, I vote, this is my locus, do we talk about what is my locus? When will the Prime Minister be asked questions? You tell me, there is a stampede in Kumbh, don’t ask questions, don’t ask questions, a crowd comes. The bridge broke in Morvi. No no no no, no questions are not to be asked. Such a big accident happened in Balasore. Don’t ask questions and there Railway Minister, so many dead bodies are scattered, “Vande Mataram Vande Mataram”, hey, say Ram naam satya hai, say that. So many dead people are lying there. What Vande Mataram? Have you achieved victory that you are saying Vande Mataram? You don’t have to ask questions right away, when do you want to ask them? So many days have passed, what have you done? How many heads have you brought back from Pakistan? We also want you to go and bring the heads of those who have committed such a big crime, killed our own people, this country is waiting for you. Did you file an FIR against me and what else did you do?
NS:
This is not the first time you are being criticized. On social media, you are being called a terrorist and are also being abused. How difficult is it for you to bear this?
NSR:
It is very difficult for us, very difficult. The thing is that everything becomes a big deal on social media. I remember your feelings once and it is not like that. I still keep a lot of feelings hidden in my heart. I remember once in 2020-22 probably when I said something in UP for the first time in a very obscene manner, people started abusing me. I came on camera and I started crying. That was not a drama cry, she came, she started crying, a few people commented about me, I said, what did I do? I don’t know what they made of it, I thought, oh god, do you have to do anything, don’t cry on camera. If you cried, look at her they say, she started crying, look she is so weak, look and there is a lot of obscenity in it, I said no, it’s okay, there are a lot of feelings in the heart. You should cry in front of only the one who can wipe your tears. This social media is ready to tear you apart, we will cry here, these are emotions, they are very personal and will be revealed in front of few people, I will not show my emotions on this social media that I am sad but I am sad. A case of treason may be registered against you. What is the harm in asking questions?
NS:
You just told me that your mother received a call and people were abusing her in various ways, so it definitely impacts the family when it impacts you.
NSR:
My mother was telling me today, some reporter who lives in Bihar, called her and asked her where is Neha ji. She said she is married, she doesn’t live here, so where does she live? Does she live in Delhi or Islamabad. I said what did you say? The journalist is talking like this, he said yes, I said, you know Islamabad is not in India, it is the capital of Pakistan, so you keep saying things like this, my mother has said that she is in Delhi and people know that maybe I live in Delhi. So is she in Delhi or Islamabad. This is the language of journalists. These journalists have become such big sycophants, if you say anything to them, then they are journalists, well leave it, I will not get into it, okay.
NS:
You have just said that the current media, the current journalists, ask questions in this manner, so how do you view the current media coverage?
NSR:
The current media coverage, the media was of one channel, I had even saved the photo, that the war between Pakistan and India happened, and look India won. I said I did not know when and where this happened. India Pakistan fought, India won, I am not the only one who is updated about where and when the fight happened. Madam you are laughing, really my phone is there, I would have shown it to you. This is what someone had written, people have stopped taking the media seriously. People have stopped watching TV. People are not watching TV now, right? Some people doing independent journalism are watching some channels. Are you understanding this? People have stopped watching TV, better than that people are saying that we will watch “Taarak Mehta Ka Ulta Chashma” [a comedy show]. So this is the condition of media right now.
NS:
Yes, as you told that coming back to your family, sometimes your husband is also targeted. Did you also tell your mother how to talk over the phone? Speaking so openly and expressing your views so openly. Does your family allow you to do this?
NSR:
Look, I am married now. When I was at my parental home, yes I can say that my mother was very strict about all these things. She had a little restriction that no, daughter, I should not do this, but because I have married the boy of my choice. His name is Himanshu, we both liked each other and got married. He knows my nature, I know him. Now when I had done UP Mein Ka ba Part 2 , you people might be aware of the episode of Himanshu ji’s job. His job was taken away and many other things happened, so I also used to keep saying Himanshu, you don’t have any problem. We love each other, we are with each other. My father-in-law is also very good. Now think that if my family was not standing behind me like a pillar, then maybe I would not have been able to speak with so much confidence and this is absolutely right. Now if my husband says, no, what are you doing? Should I fight at home or should I come here and talk. They say, drink water, eat something, when you all leave then he will say, drink Glucon D, you must be tired, he takes so much care of me, he stands like a pillar behind me and my family.
NS:
You are a folk singer, there are many folk singers in this country. But they are maintaining silence. They are speaking in favour of the government.
NSR:
They are not folk singers, they are government singers. Yes madam.
NS:
Why did you choose to speak out?
NSR:
Why did you choose to speak? Because everyone went silent. I was singing songs, wasn’t I? I was singing folk songs. Why did I have to speak suddenly because I saw that the media has gone silent. The media has become a slave of the Chowkidar. It has become a sycophant, so what should I do? I will have to speak, someone will have to speak, if everyone becomes silent then who will speak? Then democracy will end in this way. There will be one person who will rule over everyone and the rest will be silent, yes-men, yes-men, it won’t work like this, right, that’s why I chose to speak. When everyone becomes silent, then someone will have to speak, right?
NS:
There are claims that you have intentions of going into politics?
NSR:
Yes. Joining politics is not a bad thing and I am not very averse to politics. Right now I have no desire to join politics, otherwise what would I have to do to join politics? Wearing a party’s hat is enough and then you’re in politics. It is not such a big deal, I don’t feel like it right now. But I will think about it.
NS:
Just one last question at the end of this video, how are you viewing this FIR? The way you are being silenced, the way you are being mentally tortured, the way you are being called a traitor, while you yourself mentioned in a video that 14 people from your family are in the army.
NSR:
I am seeing during this episode that every effort is being made to harass me mentally, but I will keep putting forward my point and will keep speaking and I will fight and I am fully hopeful that I will fight and I will win.
Related:
NWMI statement in support of Neha Singh Rathore and other satirists
