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HomeFact Check2016 Pro-Khalistan Rally Video Falsely Attributed To Ongoing Farmers’ Protest

2016 Pro-Khalistan Rally Video Falsely Attributed To Ongoing Farmers’ Protest

A video of a pro-Khalistan rally is being shared on social media in association with the ongoing farmers’ protest. Slogans of ‘Khalistan zindabad’ can be heard in the video. 

The caption shared with the video reads, “यह हिंदुस्तान का गरीब किसान है इनकी मांगें पूरी करो सरकार…अब कुछ लोग कहेंगे यह दिल्ली का नही, कुछ कहेंगे ये किसान नही। और कुछ कहेंगे अंकुर आर्य नफरत फैला रहा है। ताकि मूल संकट से ध्यान भटका सकें।”

Translated from Hindi to English it reads, “This is the poor farmer of India, please fulfill their demands …Now some people will say it is not from Delhi, some will say it is not a farmer. And some will say Ankur is spreading hatred. So that we can divert attention from the original crisis.”

We’ve noticed various other claims attributing images and videos of old/ unrelated Khalistan movements to the current farmers’ protests in Delhi. You can view these claims debunked by NewsChecker here and here

Fact Check/ Verification 

We did a reverse image search of keyframes from the video on Yandex.com. This led us to a Youtube video uploaded on a channel named “Singh is King” on 3 October, 2020. 

Screenshot from the claim's search result on Yandex.com
Screenshot from the claim’s search result on Yandex.com

The Youtube video includes similar keyframes as seen in the claim’s video. 

Continuing our search using relevant keywords, we next came across a Youtube channel named “Khalsa Gatka Group”. On 25 May 2016, the channel uploaded a video titled, “Live From Beas (Shiv Sena not Come to Amritsar).” This video includes the clip from the claim which can be viewed at the 1.38-minute timestamp.

We compare similar keyframes from both videos below. 

Comparison of keyframes from the viral video (Left) and the 2016 Youtube video (Right)
Comparison of keyframes from the viral video (Left) and the 2016 Youtube video (Right)

We also came across a May 2016 article published by Hindustan Times titled, “Sikh hardliners challenge Shiv Sainiks in absentia.” The first paragraph of this article reads, “Even as Hindu right wing Shiv Sena had called off its Lalkar Rally about three days back, Sikh hardliners assembled at the proposed site—the Beas bridge—on the National Highway -1 on Wednesday to challenge them.”

Screenshot from a 2016 Hindustan Times article on Sikhs challenging Shiv sainiks
Screenshot from a 2016 Hindustan Times article on Sikhs challenging Shiv sainiks

This claim is also debunked in our Hindi fact-check

Conclusion

Our research makes it clear that the pro Khalistan rally video in the initial claim is at least four years old and is not associated with the ongoing farmers’ protest in Delhi. 

Result: Misleading

Our Sources

Singh Is King Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ie_XqfpG0v0&t=130s

Khalsa Gatka Group: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t5oP0XGk4Cw&feature=emb_title

Hindustan Times: https://www.hindustantimes.com/punjab/sikh-hardliners-hold-anakh-rally-at-beas-bridge-to-challenge-shiv-sena-in-absentia-after-cancellation-of-lalkar-rally/story-v6KzHSiNeju8Vcbt8rlHXK.html


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