Authors
Vasudha noticed the growing problem of mis/disinformation online after studying New Media at ACJ in Chennai and became interested in separating facts from fiction. She is interested in learning how global issues affect individuals on a micro level. Before joining Newschecker’s English team, she was working with Latestly.
Pankaj Menon is a fact-checker based out of Delhi who enjoys ‘digital sleuthing’ and calling out misinformation. He has completed his MA in International Relations from Madras University and has worked with organisations like NDTV, Times Now and Deccan Chronicle online in the past.
Claim
Rajasthan Police thrash accused of throwing a cow tail outside a Bhilwara temple.
Fact
2022 video from UP’s Saharanpur shared in false context.
A cow tail was reportedly found outside a temple in Rajasthan’s Bhilwara, triggering communal tension in the city last week. Now, a purported video of police personnel brutally thrashing a group of men is going viral on social media platforms with users claiming that it showed the Rajasthan Police’s action on the accused in the Bhilwara case. Newschecker, however, found the claim to be untrue.
Several X and Facebook users posted the video spanning over 30-seconds claiming to show Rajasthan police “extending ‘hospitality’ to misguided youth of the peaceful community” who cut off the tail of a cow, and threw it outside the temple.
Such posts can be seen here, here, here and here.
Also Read: Viral Video Claiming To Show RSS March In Haryana Is Actually From Kerala
Fact Check/Verification
A Google lens search on the keyframes of the viral video led us to an India Today report, dated June 12, 2022. Carrying screengrabs from the same footage, the report stated, “The video had surfaced on social media on Saturday. It was alleged that it showed policemen at Saharanpur Kotwali thrashing protesters accused of rioting and stone-pelting in the district…Saharanpur SSP Akash Tomar said that the video is not from the district.”
It added that SP Chief Akhilesh Yadav also posted the video on X following UP Police’s crackdown on protesters. Notably, Yadav’s post inferred the video to be from UP, it did not mention any particular district/city.
The agitators were reportedly demanding the arrest of suspended BJP spokesperson Nupur sharma and expelled Delhi unit media in-charge Naveen Jindal over their controversial remarks on Prophet Muhammad.
A video report by Times Of India on the incident further stated that the UP police had agreed to investigate the allegation of custodial beating, after denying that the footage was from Saharanpur.
Another report by the outlet quoted the then Saharanpur SSP Akash Tomar as saying, “ASP (city) Rajesh Kumar is conducting an inquiry to verify the video. Action will be taken accordingly.” “No one in the family could identify the policemen thrashing the accused in the video. Now we are trying to get the cops identified by the accused, who are in jail,” he added.
The families of the persons in the video, however, refuted the claim, as per the report. “My son is the one in the blue kurta pajama. His other friend, Subhan, is in the yellow kurta pajama. No one from the police has approached our families so far,” the report quoted one Shaheen Siddiqui whose son Asif Siddique was seen in the video.
The National Human Rights Commission also sought a response from the Saharanpur police over alleged custodial brutality after the video went viral in June, 2022.
Furthermore, we found that eight men seen in the viral footage were later cleared of all the charges, and released from the jail. “ Eight men assaulted in custody by the police in a viral video after protests in Uttar Pradesh’s Saharanpur last month have been cleared of any charges. After the police said there is no evidence against them, and the local court discharged them, they walked out of jail yesterday,” an NDTV report published on July 4, 2022 stated.
It also featured an interview with Mohammed Ali, one of the men seen in the viral video, following acquittal.
Also Read: ‘I Am A Big Fan Of Hindu’: Old Video Of Donald Trump Shared As Recent Ahead Of 2024 US Polls
Conclusion
Hence, an old video from Uttar Pradesh has been falsely shared to show Rajasthan police personnel thrashing those accused of throwing a cow tail outside a temple in Bhilwara.
Result: False
Sources
Report By India Today, Dated June 12, 2022
Report By Times Of India, Dated June 17, 2022
Report By NDTV, Dated July 4, 2022
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Authors
Vasudha noticed the growing problem of mis/disinformation online after studying New Media at ACJ in Chennai and became interested in separating facts from fiction. She is interested in learning how global issues affect individuals on a micro level. Before joining Newschecker’s English team, she was working with Latestly.
Pankaj Menon is a fact-checker based out of Delhi who enjoys ‘digital sleuthing’ and calling out misinformation. He has completed his MA in International Relations from Madras University and has worked with organisations like NDTV, Times Now and Deccan Chronicle online in the past.
