Meet Abhinav Pandey: The vocal ‘activist’ of Jantar Mantar protest missing in intensity over Jharkhand paper leak

Abhinav Pandey, the founder of News Pinch, has come under the scanner for attempting to shield Hemant Soren’s Jharkhand government over the ongoing paper leak crisis. For the unversed, thousands of students are protesting in Ranchi seeking accountability for irregularities, leaked question papers and tampered OMR sheets during the JPSC Civil Services and JSSC-CGL tests. Abhinav, who was conveniently speaking the language of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) members during the entirety of the Jantar Mantar protests, appeared to mellow down his tone when it came to the Jharkhand student protest. Instead of his otherwise aggressive anti-establishment stance, Abhinav Pandey began highlighting the Soren government’s stance and course of action over exam irregularities. This was not something he had done during the CJP protests, which had weaponised the NEET paper leak, despite a series of prompt actions taken by the Modi government. Starting from the scrapping of the compromised exam and arresting the culprits to red-conducting NEET and ensuring timely results, the government did everything possible so as to not jeropardise the career of students. View this post on Instagram A post shared by News Pinch (@thenewspinch) “The public has reached the nose of the government…After lathi charge, the days of Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation are numbered,” read a caption on one reel. Forget about highlighting any of the proactive measures undertaken by the Modi government, Abhinav Pandey gave up the pretence of being a ‘journalist.’ He became a full-time ‘activist’ at Jantar Mantar (of course, for the sake of students) and put out provocative videos with equally inciteful captions. At one point, he began speaking like the spokesperson of the Opposition parties. Using his social media influence, Abhinav Pandey helped push the Cockroach Janta Party’s agenda to its conclusion. “Gen-Z students have won, we have said that Modi government will have to bend,” read the caption of another reel. This is not ‘journalism’ but clear political advocacy. No wonder, the CJP supporters hailed him for reporting their version of the truth. “Resignation was not tendered, students stood on your chest and took it from you…What is the state of Jantar Mantar after the resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan,” the caption of another reel stated. View this post on Instagram A post shared by News Pinch (@thenewspinch) To further his narrative, one protester was platformed by News Pinch, who claimed, “Resignation was forcibly taken; they (Modi government) lost the battle.” But the antics of Abhinav Pandey did not end here. He capitalised on leftist-Islamist rhetoric that somehow everyone contributed to the idea of India, and it doesn’t belong to anyone’s father. “GenZ has shown in CJP protest that no party owns India, the government is of the youth,” read the caption of yet another reel. It became virtually impossible to separate News Pinch from the Cockroach Janta Party. The two worked in tandem to amplify a vicious narrative and mislead the youth. The ‘news outfit’ served as the propaganda arm of the party. View this post on Instagram A post shared by News Pinch (@thenewspinch) Despite all this, News Pinch’s co-founder Saurabh Tripathi had the audacity to berate other journalists as ‘Godi Media’. View this post on Instagram A post shared by News Pinch (@thenewspinch) Abhinav Pandey and the Jharkhand paper leak crisis But the irony of the situation did not end there. On Sunday (2nd August), Abhinav Pandey put out a tweet highlighting how the Jharkhand government is proactively taking steps to deal with the ongoing paper leak crisis. While heaping praise on the incumbent Chief Minister, he stated, “The Hemant Soren government is taking a lesson from Jantar Mantar. Until now, any use of force has been forbidden. Amidst the students’ sit-in protest, several actions have taken place.” Abhinav further claimed, “11 people involved in the recruitment irregularity have been arrested. The JPSC Chairman has resigned. Interrogation of the JPSC Chairman for 8 hours each for 3 consecutive days. The 14th JPSC examination has been postponed. Mains cancelled. Arrest of the JPSC Chairman and former Chief Secretary Khiangte is possible.” Screengrab of the tweet by Abhinav Pandey After the ‘neutral journalist’ was done with the PR work of the Hemant Soren government, he claimed, “The student whose OMR sheet was leaked has been arrested. He is the son of an AJSU leader. AJSU is a constituent party of the NDA.” In his final act of monkey-balancing, Abhinav Pandey wrote, “Now the students demand a CBI investigation into the entire matter, while currently, the CID is investigating. To restore faith in a collapsed recruitment system, why isn’t Hemant Soren recommending an inquiry? And the question is also this: why is no recruitment in your state able to be completed without controversy?” When netizens pointed out that the ‘activist mode’ of Abhinav Pandey was missing, he soon went into firefighting mode along with his co-founder Saurabh Tripathi. अखिलेश जी, आप बच्चों के बड़े शुभचिंतक नज़र आ रहे हैं. पर ये क्या, आपका ही अख़बार बच्चों को आवाज़ नहीं दे पा रहा. फ्रंट पेज में एक भी लाइन नहीं है. थोड़ा ट्वीट अपने अख़बार और अपने संपादकों को टैग करके भी करिए. चलिए ये काम मैं कर देता हूँ.@shekharkahin जी आपको अपने रिपोर्टर की… https://t.co/uGhcblwgS1— Saurabh Tripathi (@Saurabh_Pinch) August 2, 2026 But the difference was glaring and brazen. While the founders of News Pinch did talk about the Jharkhand student protest (to escape the allegation of being indifferent to the plight of students in a non-BJP-ruled state), there was a marked change in intensity. There were no campaigns seeking resignation or pressure on the Hemant Soren government to remove its Education Minister. This coverage and the call for accountability were not just subtle but borderline non-existent. Conclusion The ‘activist of Jantar Mantar’ was not just physically absent in Ranchi but also not vocal to the same extent on social media. This is a textbook case of agenda-driven journalism where selective outrage, cherry-picking, and hyperboles are employed wherever convenient. On the other side, there is shrewd silence, distant and cold treatment of issues in the hopes of looking ‘neutral’ and not alienating the core party/ideological support. I must confess that Abhinav Pandey of News Pinch, otherwise known for his ungratefulness and mental gymnastics, has indeed mastered this art.