Salman Khan Threatens Lawrence Bishnoi? Video Message During 2020 Covid Lockdown Viral With False Claim

Claim
Salman Khan threatens Lawrence Bishnoi after the murder of his friend and NCP leader Baba Siddique.

Fact
Actor’s video message during the Covid-enforced lockdown in April 2020 shared in false context.

A video, allegedly showing Bollywood actor Salman Khan threatening gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, has gone viral on social media platforms following the assassination of NCP leader Baba Siddique last week.  In the video, Khan is purportedly heard saying, “I accept that you are very powerful. You are very brave. You are brave enough…. to lift the bier of your family members. Do you have enough courage?…” 

Several Facebook and X users shared the video, claiming to show Salman Khan threatening Lawrence Bishnoi. Newschecker, however, found the claim to be untrue.

Such posts can be seen here, here, here and here.

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The Lawrence Bishnoi gang has reportedly claimed responsibility for Siddique’s murder. In a Facebook post, Shubu Lonkar, an alleged aide of Bishnoi, claimed that the politician was killed due to his alleged connection to Dawood Ibrahim, closeness to Salman Khan and death of Anuj Thapan, one of the arrested suspects in the shooting outside the actor’s house in April, in police custody.

Fact Check/Verification

A Google Lens search on the keyframes of the viral footage led us to a report by ABP News, dated April 16, 2020, titled “Bollywood’s ‘Tiger’ Salman Khan angry at stone pelters.” Carrying the same footage of the actor, it stated, “Bollywood superstar Salman Khan is known for his actions and powerful dialogues in the movie. But today, he let out an equally powerful condemnation of attacks on doctors, medical staff and policemen treating coronavirus cases across the country.”

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We then looked up the keywords “Salman Khan,” “stone pelters” and “Covid” on Google which yielded a report by NDTV, dated April 16, 2020. It featured a photo of Khan in the same attire and background as seen in the viral clip, and stated “Salman Khan, in his latest social media post, delivered a strong message against those who are violating the lockdown and putting the lives of others at risk amid the coronavirus outbreak.”

The report also featured an Instagram post by Khan, featuring his video message around the Covid lockdown posted on April 15, 2020. We analysed the nearly 10-minute-long footage, and spotted the viral clip towards the end of the video.

Multiple outlets, such as this, this and this, had reported on this video message of Salman Khan amid the Covid lockdown in April, 2020. 

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Conclusion

A 2020 video message of Salman Khan warning against violating Covid lockdown rules has been falsely shared as showing the actor threatening gangster Lawrence Bishnoi.

Result: False

Sources
Report By ABP News, Dated April 16, 2020
Report By NDTV, Dated April 16, 2020
Instagram Post By @beingsalmankhan, Dated April 15, 2024

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