Authors
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.
New Delhi: Among the various videos surfacing online in the aftermath of the violent clashes in Chhattisgarh’s Kawardha, one of the videos, posted by Twitter user @Pronamotweets shows an army of men waving saffron flags, in cars and jeeps, speeding on a highway. The video claims that these men are Bajrang Dal activists travelling from Bilaspur to Kawardha in the wake of the violence. A fact check by Newschecker has found it to be a recent video from Punjab.
The song ‘Ram ji ki sena chali’ is heard playing in the background of the 00:21 second long video.
The video tweeted out by the user has over 1,700 retweets and over 34,000 views at the time of publishing. The video has also been shared by multiple users.
Fact Check/Verification
The handle @Pronamotweets, in the same thread, credits the video to Facebook. There are no specific posts or profiles that the user has attributed the video to.
On closer examination of the video, it is seen that the nearest jeep in the video has a number plate with the initials ‘PB’, establishing that the vehicle is from Punjab, far away from Chhattisgarh.
On analysing more keyframes, it was found that the text on the windshield of the car also carries the word ‘Punjab’.
A keyword search by Newschecker on YouTube threw up a video from September 13, posted by user @Rama Nand with the caption ‘This is a Hindu rally organised by AHP Punjab for the unity of Hindu. @ahp @antrarastriye_hindu_parishad @ahp_haryana @hindu_rastra’. AHP or the Antarashtriya Hindu Parishad is a right wind outfit that works in Punjab and Haryana region.
A Facebook search for the profile @AHPPunjab threw up the official page of the same organisation, which has shared the same video on its page on September 4, with the caption ‘Har Har Mahadev! Saffron march in Mohali, Punjab, under the leadership of Mahant Shri Ravi Kant Muni ji, demanding the Mandir Act.’
Following the source, Newschecker traced the video to a post by the page of Mahant Ravi Kant Muni, who shared the video on September 3 without any caption.
Also read: Old Video Shared As Kawardha Skyline Dotted With Saffron Flags, Goes Viral
Conclusion
A fact check by Newschecker has revealed that the video, claiming to be that of Bajrang Dal cadres speeding to Kawardha to aide in the protests in the violence hit city is not true, and is in fact an old video of a rally demanding the Mandir Act from Punjab’s Mohali.
Result
Misleading content
Sources
Social media posts
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Authors
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.
