The deadly terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam claimed 26 lives, plunging India and Pakistan into a period of heightened tension. Both countries quickly responded with strong diplomatic and military actions with India suspending the Indus Waters Treaty, cancelling the SAARC Visa exemption for Pakistani nationals, and banning imports. Pakistan retaliated by suspending the 1972 Simla Agreement and closing its ports to Indian ships. Amid the diplomatic fallout, there have been repeated ceasefire violations along the Line of Control (LoC).
As the standoff drags on, social media in both India and Pakistan has erupted with heated rhetoric, with hashtags like #IndiaPakistanWar and #IndiaPakistanTensions trending widely across platforms. This surge in online activity has created the perfect environment for misinformation and propaganda to spread rapidly, fueling confusion and amplifying tensions on both sides.
But the Indian army has found itself at the centre of the storm, not just on the front lines but also in the digital battlefield of misinformation. From rumours about abrupt suspensions of top level officers/commanders to secret disciplinary actions and fake soldiers’ exposes, social media is flooded with sensational claims. As tensions with Pakistan escalated, so too did the spread of misinformation, threatening to undermine public trust and morale.
Case Study: The ‘Fake Soldier’ Video
One of the most widely shared pieces of misinformation in this narrative is a video of a man calling himself ‘Ashok Kumar,’ claiming to be a senior Indian Army officer. In the video, he suggests the Pahalgam attack was a “false flag operation.”
The video was widely shared by anti-India accounts on social media platforms and Newschecker even received the same on our tipline (+91-9999499044) requesting it to be fact checked.
A preliminary look at the video reveals several glaring inconsistencies- the uniform worn by the alleged officer was an old and not the new combat uniform unveiled in 2022.
Several users were quick to point out the inconsistency, and also flag more damning information- that the man seen in the viral clip is a Pakistan-based actor, ‘Malik Kanji’, and not any Indian army soldier.
Multiple others also shared a screengrab from his LinkedIn profile, which identified his location as “Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan,” though we were not able to find the original source of the screengrab.
A look at the LinkedIn profile, based on the viral screengrab, throws up the resume of one ‘Dr Malik Kanji’, together with his address, along with a telephone number, further confirming that he is a resident of Pakistan’s Karachi.
The WhatsApp account using the number given in the resume also carried a picture featuring the same man as seen in the viral clip, confirming that he was indeed a Karachi based actor.
Newschecker also reached out to a spokesperson of the Indian Army and a senior officer, both of whom clarified that the man seen in the viral clip is not associated with the Indian Army.
Old, Unrelated Videos Falsely Linked To Escalating Security Situation
The story doesn’t end there. The recent standoff has also seen anti-India accounts widely sharing old and unrelated videos, linking it to the recent standoff.
Last week, an old video showing a fighter jet crash in Maharashtra was falsely shared as an Indian jet shot down by Pakistani forces along the LoC.
In another instance, a photograph from a 2023 accident was peddled to falsely claim that two Indian soldiers were killed in Jammu and Kashmir’s Ramban district after terrorists opened fire at their vehicle. Social media users also shared unrelated and old visuals to falsely claim that the Pakistan army had destroyed two Indian Army posts along the LoC.
False Claims Attempt To Fuel ‘Indian Army Scared’ Narrative
Several social media users also shared a video purportedly showing Indian Army officers walking out of a press conference as a journalist allegedly confronted them over the delay in fighting Pakistan following the Pahalgam terror attack. The video was, however, found to have been shared in a false context, and the press briefing was actually regarding an assault on a Colonel by Punjab police.
Another claim meanwhile suggested that the Army dismissed the Northern Army commander following the deadly terror attack in Pahalgam. The fact, however, is that the Northern Commander Lt Gen Suchindra Kumar, retired from his service on April 30, and there was no dismissal or suspension.
Government’s PIB Fact Check has also called out multiple other false claims about senior Indian military officers on social media platforms by ‘pro-Pakistan’ accounts. The same can be seen here and here.
Most of these claims were observed to be Pakistan-based social media handles, including verified profiles – a few of which are not withheld in India in response to legal demands.
While the impact of blocking accounts from Pakistan is yet to be known, the persistence of such narratives suggests the need for fact-checking and verification before sharing any content, to stem the flow of misinformation.
Sources
X Post By @ANI, Dated January 15, 2022
Resume Of Malik Kanji
Conversation With Indian Army Spokesperson, Senior Officer
(With inputs from Runjay Kumar of Newschecker Hindi)
