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.
Ever since arson and violence broke out in Rajasthan’s Karauli over a religious procession to mark the Hindu New Year, social media has been abuzz with several claims around similar clashes during the 9-day navratri period in various parts of the country. One such video, which was widely shared on social media, stated that the Luthra Sharif dargah in Chhattisgarh’s Bilaspur was attacked by participants of one such procession. Newschecker has found the claim to be misleading.
The latest video shows saffron clad men walking towards a mosque while ‘Jai Shri Ram’ chants and music being played on a loudspeaker can be heard in the background. One of the users who shared the video, @AzizurTweets, wrote “This week hundreds of #Hindutva revellers targeted a #Muslim dargah in their usual rowdyish style, chanting #JaiSriRam and playing loud music, in praise of Lord Ram.The dargah is not located in a BJP-ruled state. It is at #LuthraSharif, Bilaspur, in #Congress-ruled #Chhatisgarh!”. The tweet received around 400 likes and over 270 shares.
Another post shared by Facebook user Faisal Khan carrying the same caption was further shared 1,000 times and received over 300 likes.
Also Read: Video of Mob Chanting Jai Shri Ram Slogan Outside Mosque Has Nothing To Do With The Kolar Violence
Fact check/ Verification
Newschecker began by looking up relevant reports of the alleged incident online using a keyword search, but were unable to locate any media reports on the same.
Researching further, we conducted a reverse image search of the same video and found a tweet by a handle @vishnukant_7 regarding the video. The user, who is verified by Twitter and identifies himself as a journalist working with The Quint, tweeted that the claims of saffron clad mob attacking the dargah were false. “This video in front of #luthrasharif of #Chhattisgarh is being presented with the wrong context. The rally was passing in front of the dargah, after which the rally and the DJ took a U-turn and people went home without any arguments or confrontation.”
In another tweet in the same thread, he added “Sipat police station in-charge Rajkumar Souri has confirmed all the above mentioned things, as well as Muslim journalists of the area have also denied occurrence of any dispute.”
Following this, Newschecker reached out to the Sipat police, who confirmed the sequence of events recounted in the tweet thread. “There is no attack here, the allegation is completely false. The incident took place on April 2, on the Hindu New Year, when a shobha yatra was being held. The vehicle playing the DJ music was turning the vehicle around, and people in the procession went with him. That’s all that happened. There has been no attack whatsoever. Arrangements for snacks were also made there. The claims are baseless,” Rajkumar Sarohi, the station in charge of Seepat police station said.
Speaking to Newschecker, Syed Akbar Bakshi, President of Luthra Sharif Dargah Committee, confirmed that there had been no attack on the dargah. “The allegation is false. There is a big ground in front of the dargah, adjoining which is the entrance to the village. There was a ‘julus’ (procession) that was passing by and someone took a video of it and shared it online with a false claim. The authorities held a meeting with members of both communities and it was decided that no religious procession would be carried out in front of the dargah,” Syed Akbar Bakshi said.
Conclusion
A video of a ‘Shobha yatra’ passing in front of the Luthra Sharif dargah in Chhatisgarh’s Bilaspur has been shared on Twitter, falsely claiming to show an attack on the dargah by Hindu men.
Result: Misleading/Partly False
Sources
Tweets by journalist Vishnukant
Conversation with Sipat station in-charge
Conversation with President of Luthra Sharif Dargah Committee
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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.
