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Video captures flag associated with Milad-un-Nabi raised in Chhattisgarh in October 2022 - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
August 16, 2023
In the context of the recently concluded Indian Independence Day, a video depicting a tricolour flag atop a building, resembling the Indian flag but featuring a crescent and star on all colour bands, is being extensively shared on social media, with claims that the video shows Muslims in Alwar, Rajasthan, defacing the Indian flag. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Visuals of tricolour flag atop a building in Rajasthan’s Alwar resembling the Indian flag but featuring a crescent and star on all colours.
Fact: Viral video was filmed at Chorbhatthi-Kala village in the Bilaspur district of Chhattisgarh in October 2022. It is one of the various flags utilized during the Eid Milad-un-Nabi festival. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
Conducting a reverse image search of the keyframes extracted from the viral video led us to a news report published on the website of the Chhattisgarh-based news outlet Lokswar on 06 October 2022. According to this report, the viral video was filmed at Chorbhatthi-Kala village on the Bilaspur-Ganiyari-Kota Road in the state of Chhattisgarh. Moreover, we observed a better version of the viral video on the website, where the words “Yousuf Mobile shop and…” are visible on the building.
Taking a cue from this information, we utilized Google Maps to pinpoint the location. Upon comparing the street view visuals with those from the viral video, it becomes evident that the flag is affixed to the building situated in Chorbhatti-Kala village in the Bilaspur district of Chhattisgarh.
As we couldn’t reach out to the Yousuf Mobile shop, we contacted the organizers of the nearby Amitabh Traders. They confirmed that the flag seen in the video was raised by Yousuf during the Eid Milad-un-Nabi festival in October 2022 and clarified that it is not an Indian flag, but rather one of the various flags utilized during the Eid Milad-un-Nabi festival. Corroborating this detail, our further research has revealed that the flag seen in the viral video has been utilized in various Milad-un-Nabi processions (here, here & here) across the country in the past.
To sum it up, the viral video depicts a flag associated with Milad-un-Nabi being raised on a building in Chhattisgarh.


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Video claiming IAF Fighter Pilot Abhinandan dancing with the Pakistan Army and Air Force is an Old Video - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
March 1, 2019
Some pages on Facebook posted a video claiming that IAF fighter pilot Abhinandan who was captured by Pakistan army was dancing with them. This is going viral. Let us ascertain the veracity of these claims.
Captured Pilot Abhinandan Dancing with Pakistan Army
We can find the same video uploaded on YouTube even before the capture of Abhinandan. So, the claim is
When we reverse searched few frames obtained using Invid tool, we found out that there are similar videos uploaded on YouTube at different times and one such video was uploaded on YouTube by Zee Creation on 23rd February 2019, much before the capture of Abhinandan by Pakistan forces.
Hence the claim that Abhinandan is dancing with Pakistan army doesn’t hold any truth in and all such claims are false.

source: news-factly

license: Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

author: Sai Krishna Muthyanolla


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Video clip from the movie 'PM Narendra Modi' is shared as the trailer of the upcoming movie ‘Emergency’ - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
September 8, 2023
A video claimed to be the trailer for the upcoming movie ‘Emergency’. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: The video shows the trailer of an upcoming movie, ‘Emergency.’
Fact: It’s a seven-minute trimmed video clip from a Hindi movie, ‘PM Narendra Modi’. Hence, the claim made in the post is False.
On conducting a reverse image search of the key frames extracted from the video, we found that it’s a seven-minute trimmed video clip from the movie ‘PM Narendra Modi’, released in 2019.
However, a movie named Emergency, starring Kangana Ranaut is yet to release. The claimed video is not related to the movie. The original teaser of the film ‘Emergency’ can be viewed here.
To sum up, a video clip from the movie, ‘PM Narendra Modi’ is shared as the trailer of the upcoming movie ‘Emergency.’

created: September 8, 2023


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Video clip of a creature designed by visual artist Tobias Gremmler shared as visuals of a strange beast - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
February 3, 2023
A video of an alleged weird creature lurking in the wilderness is being shared on social media with a claim that the visuals are of a strange beast. Let’s fact-check this claim through this article.
Claim: Visuals of a strange beast lurking in the wilderness.
Fact: The creature in the video is digitally created by a visual artist named ‘Tobias Gremmler.’ The viral post shares a small portion of a video he uploaded on his social media handles as the visuals of a real beast. Hence the claim made in the post is False.
To learn more details about the video, we divided it into keyframes using the InVID tool and performed a reverse image search using a few screenshots. This search led us to a video titled ‘Caption this visual by Tobias Gremmler’ uploaded on a Facebook page called ‘Visual Atelier 8.’
We then looked for Tobias Gremmler on the internet and found an extended version of the viral video on his Instagram page. This video is titled ‘In the wilderness.’ Tobias is a Digital artist; he uploads his work on his social media handles. You can view those here and here.
To sum up, a video clip of a creature designed by visual artist Tobias Gremmler is shared as visuals of a strange beast.

created: February 3, 2023


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Video clip of an old movie is passed off as from the recent ‘The Kashmir Files’ movie - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 6, 2022
A social media post accompanying a movie clip is being widely circulated with a claim that the clip is from the recent Kashmir Files movie, which is based on the exodus of the Kashmiri pandits in 1990s.  Let’s fact-check the veracity of the clip shared in the post.
Claim: Video clip from the ‘The Kashmir Files’ movie.
Fact: The viral clip is not from the Kashmir Files movie but from a 2019 movie ‘Mudda 370 J&K’, which is also based on Kashmir. The film is made in the backdrop of Kashmir’s social environment in the 80s & 90s. The viral clip is old and has nothing to do with the recent popular ‘The Kashmir Files’ movie. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
These viral visuals are excerpts from a 2019 movie titled ‘Mudda 370 J&K’ , which is also based on Kashmir. Reverse image search of the screenshots of the viral video led us to the YouTube video which carried similar visuals.
The title of the video reads ‘Mudda Article-370, 35A J&K / Full Hindi Movie / Latest Movie 2020’. And the description of  the video claims that the movie is based on the communal tensions in Kashmir and is directed by Rakesh Sawant.
Google search with relevant keywords yielded multiple news articles that reported the movie release. As per the Times of India article, the movie is released on 13 December 2019, and is based on the social setup of Kashmir in late 80’s and early 90’s. The movie touches upon the aspects of article 370 and the plight of the Kashmiri pundits.
Thus, from the above mentioned information it is evident that  the viral video is an expert of a 2019 movie and has nothing to do with the recent ‘Kashmir Files’ movie.
To sum it up, video clip of an old movie is passed off as from the recent ‘The Kashmir Files’ movie.


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Video clips of German Singer Cass Mae shared as visuals of girls from USA reciting Shiva stotras - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 23, 2023
A post sharing multiple video clips is being circulated on social media claiming it is the visuals of American girls singing various stotras of the Hindu deity Lord Shiva. Sharing the video, the post says that Shiva stotras have gained immense popularity in the USA due to their established effectiveness in sound therapy. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video clips showing girls in the USA reciting Shiva stotras.
Fact: The video clips shared in the post show clips of German singer and Musician Cass Mae. Cass Mae also sang different other Hindu deities’ songs and published them on her Instagram handle. The videos do not show girls in the USA singing Shiva Stotras. Hence, the claim made in the post is False.
On reverse image search of the screenshots of the video clips shared in the post, a video showing similar visuals was found published on the Instagram handle of German singer and Musician Cass Mae. Cass Mae published the video with the description, “I felt like posting one more Lord Shiva Mantra. I‘m always happy when you save and share”.
A few other video clips shared in the post were also found on the Instagram handle of Cass Mae. They can be seen here, here, and here. Cass Mae also performed songs dedicated to various other Hindu deities and shared them on her Instagram account. A few other details of German singer Cass Mae can be seen here. From all these pieces of evidence, it can be concluded that the video clips shared in the post show the cover songs by German singer Cass Mae, and have nothing to do with the USA.
To sum it up, video clips of German musician Cass Mae are shared as the visuals of USA girls reciting shiva stotras.


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[Video] DECODE Promo
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
March 9, 2019
Here is the promo of our brand new show ‘DECODE’, to be launched soon. The show will focus on simplifying complex issues related to government policy, government rules and many other issues related to government and useful to the public.


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Video depicting a candid moment between Narendra Modi and Yogi Adityanath is falsely shared as Modi insulting Yogi - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 12, 2024
A video showing PM Modi pulling Yogi Adityanath by the hand is being widely shared with the claim that Modi insulted Yogi by pushing him away when he attempted to bring up a chair to sit (here, here & here). The alleged incident took place during a public meeting in Pilibhit, Uttar Pradesh. In this article, let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video depicting PM Narendra Modi insulting Yogi Adityanath by pushing him away when the latter attempted to pull up a chair to sit.
Fact: During a public meeting in Pilibhit in April 2024, when Yogi Adityanath was invited to speak, he initially attempted to approach the podium from behind by pushing his chair aside, but PM Modi took his hand and signaled him to approach from the front instead. This moment is misconstrued as Modi insulting Yogi Adityanath. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
The event shown in the viral video took place recently in Pilibhit in April 2024, during a public meeting attended by PM Modi and Yogi Adityanath as part of the campaign for the upcoming 2024 elections. However, the full video of the meeting reveals that Modi did not insult Yogi Adityanath; instead, he was directing him towards the podium.
A YouTube search with relevant keywords led us to a news report covering these candid moments between Modi and Yogi Adityanath. According to the report, the footage is from a public meeting in Pilibhit. When CM Yogi Adityanath was preparing to walk to the podium from behind, PM Modi took his hand and directed him to approach from the front.
Additionally, the BJP’s official YouTube channel shared a longer version of the meeting. This footage clearly shows that after Yogi Adityanath was invited to speak, he initially attempted to approach the podium from behind by pushing his chair aside but Modi took his hand and signalled him to approach from the front instead. Yogi Adityanath then approached the podium as guided by Modi and delivered his speech.
Therefore, these confirm that a candid moment is being falsely shared as an insult to Yogi Adityanath.
To sum it up, a video depicting a candid moment between Narendra Modi and Yogi Adityanath is falsely shared as Narendra Modi insulting Yogi Adityanath.


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Video depicting a man amputating his finger in Maharashtra is being shared with a false attribution to various political parties. - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
September 7, 2023
A video depicting a man severing his finger is currently being shared along with an assertion stating that in Tamil Nadu, an individual amputated his finger because he had used it to cast a vote for the Congress party and was dissatisfied with the lack of justice from the Congress-led government. The same video is also being shared attributing it to other political parties, across states. Through this article let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of a man in Tamil Nadu severing his finger due to lack of justice from the Congress led government.
Fact:  These visuals show a recent incident reported in Maharashtra’s Satara district, where a man chopped off one of his fingers, alleging inaction from police against those responsible for driving his brother and sister-in-law to commit suicide. Several news agencies reported the visuals. These visuals have nothing to do with Tamil Nadu or the Congress party. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
While the video shows a man cutting off his finger, it’s worth mentioning that this incident didn’t take place in Tamil Nadu and the motive, behind this action, has nothing to do with any discontent, towards the Congress party.
Relevant keyword search yielded multiple news reports that identified the same visuals as an incident that occurred in Satara district, Maharashtra (here, here & here). According to these reports, Dhananjaya Nanaware, a 43-year-old individual, amputated one of his fingers, claiming that the police had not acted against those responsible for driving his brother and sister-in-law to commit suicide.
A man in #Thane #chopped his own #finger on camera to protest the `tardy pace' of probe in the suicide case of his brother and sister-in-law. The man identified as Dhananjay Nanavare, is the brother of Nandkumar Nanavare who allegedly died by #suicide by jumping from the terrace… pic.twitter.com/srVYlJMmpP
Earlier Dhananjaya’s brother and sister-in-law ended their lives by jumping off a building. Before this, the couple recorded a video in which they named several people to be responsible for the suicide. Further, Dhananjay Nanaware warned the state government that he would chop off a body part every week if the government did not take any action.
This clearly establishes that the video is unrelated to Tamil Nadu or the Congress party. Furthermore, there are no reports of any similar incident in Tamil Nadu, alleging the Congress party of injustice.
Previously, the same video circulated widely, with claims that the man had amputated his finger due to perceived injustice from the BJP/YSRCP government. A report from FACTLY that refutes these claims can be viewed here.
To sum it up, the video depicting a man amputating his finger in Maharashtra is being shared with a false attribution to the Congress party in Tamil Nadu.

created: September 7, 2023


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Video depicting an attack on a doctor in Nashik is being shared with a false communal claim - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
March 1, 2024
A viral video showing a man brutally attacking a person sitting on a sofa and talking on a mobile phone with a sickle is being widely shared across social media platforms with the claim that the video depicts a Muslim man brutally attacking a doctor named Kailash Rathi in Nashik, Maharashtra. This article aims to fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: A Muslim man brutally attacked a doctor in Nashik, Maharashtra.
Fact: According to news reports and the FIR filed by the police, the accused in this incident is a Hindu named Rajendra More, who attacked the doctor over a financial dispute. There is no communal angle to the incident. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
To verify the authenticity of the viral claim, we conducted a relevant keyword search on the internet, which led us to several news reports (here & here). According to these reports, the incident took place in Panchavati, Nashik, on 23 February 2024. One Dr. Kailash Rathi was attacked by a man with a sickle over a monetary dispute, and later, he was admitted to the intensive care unit of a local hospital. Furthermore, these reports quoted a police official who stated that the accused was the husband of Dr. Rathi’s former employee. The accused man’s wife had allegedly misappropriated funds of around Rs. 6 lakh when she was an employee at the hospital, after which she was let go and reinstated again a few years later. “She again took Rs 12 lakh from the doctor but refused to pay it back,” the official said.
Subsequently, we also came across a news report by the Times of India. According to this report, Dr. Rathi was attacked around 9:30 pm on 23 February 2024 at his clinic in Dindori Naka, and the police arrested the assailant, Rajendra More, on 24 February 2024. It also included a statement from the Commissioner of Police, Sandeep Karnik, who mentioned that the attack resulted from a personal dispute and that More would be interrogated for further information.
Furthermore, we visited the Maharashtra Police website and checked the FIR (0109/2024) filed related to this incident, which was lodged by Reena Rathi, the wife of Dr. Kailash Rathi. Rajendra More and Rohini More were accused in the FIR, which also mentioned details of money transactions. Based on all this information, it is evident that the man who attacked Dr. Kailash Rathi does not belong to the Muslim religion and there is no communal angle to the incident.
To sum it up, the video depicting an attack on a doctor in Nashik is being shared with a false communal claim.


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Video depicting Ukrainian President Zelenskyy's belly dance is a deep fake - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
January 10, 2024
A video of a person’s belly dance at an event is being widely shared on social media. It is claimed that the person in the video is Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Through this article let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video depicts Ukrainian President Zelenskyy dancing at an event.
Fact: The viral video has been created using deepfake technology and the original video shows an unidentified man dancing. This video is being shared on social media since the year 2020. However, it is not known when and where this video was taken. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
A reverse image search on the screenshots from the viral video led us to a TikTok video shared on 16 October 2020. The visuals in this video resemble those in the viral video, with the only difference being that the person featured is not the same as the one in the viral post.
Subsequently, we also found that the same video was shared on various social media accounts over time (here & here). We could not find the identity of the person in the video, nor could we determine the exact details of when and where the video was shot. However, it is at least as old as 2020 and does not depict President Zelenskyy. Below is a comparison between the viral video and the original video.
Upon comparing the viral video with the original, it becomes apparent that the people in the background, the furniture, and even the outfit worn by the dancing individual appear identical in both videos. Based on this evidence, it can be concluded that the viral video was generated using Deep Fake Technology. It is not Zelenskyy who is seen dancing in the video from the viral post.
Deep Fake Technology:
Deepfake technology refers to the use of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning algorithms to create highly convincing fake images, videos, and audio recordings. These synthetic media are designed to appear real and are created by training algorithms on large sets of existing data such as images, videos, and audio recordings. The resulting content can be used to manipulate or deceive people by making it appear as if someone said or did something they did not. To learn more about Deepfakes and their detection, click here.
To sum it up, the viral video does not depict Zelenskyy dancing; rather, it is a fabricated video made using deep fake technology.

created: January 10, 2024


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Video edited from clips of three different old incidents is shared as a Child beaten to death by his teacher recently - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
November 14, 2022
A post is being shared on social media, which contains a news clip that reports the death of a student who was slapped by his teacher forty times. The post description reads, ‘Teacher ne bache ko Maar Dala’, which translates to ‘a teacher killed a student.’ Let’s fact-check this claim through this article.
Claim: News report on the death of a student who lost his life after a teacher slapped him forty times.
Fact:  The video in the post was created using three different clips of incidents in which teachers slapped or beat their students. In the first incident in Lucknow, a teacher slapped a child named Sunny forty times over, for not saying ‘yes, ma’am. The teacher was suspended for her actions. Sunny did not lose his life in this incident. The second video is about a child named Shivam who lost his life after his tuition teacher Kehav Gautham beat him badly. This happened in Mathura, Uttar Pradesh. The third news report is of the alleged murder of a student by her coaching teacher in Kota, Rajasthan. Hence the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
Upon keenly observing the video, we noticed that the first video is a news report by ABP news, the second one is about a boy named Shivam from Uttar Pradesh, and the third report is by News 18 about the death of a student. Using these hints, we performed a keyword search on the internet and found relevant news reports of the three incidents.
Video Clip 1:
This clip is from a news report by ABP news about a teacher who slapped a class three student forty times in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. Reportedly, she did this because he did not respond to her during a roll call. The Quint’s news clip and a news report on this incident from 2017 can be viewed here and here.
Video Clip 2:
The clip reports the death of a child named Shivam from Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, in September 2021. Reportedly, Shivam was beaten badly by his tuition teacher Kesav Gautham over not bringing the tuition fees. We did not find the original clip featured in the viral post, but several other news reports about this incident can be viewed here, here and here.
Video Clip 3:
This clip is from a news report by News18 Rajashtan on the death of a Kota student. Reportedly, a private tuition teacher allegedly strangulated a 15-year-old student. He was arrested a few days after being on the run for a while. News reports related to this incident can be read here and here.
To sum up, a video created using old news reports of three different incidents is shared as a recent news story of a child beaten to death by his teacher.

created: November 14, 2022


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[Explainer Video] Electoral Bonds & their Impact
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
January 12, 2018
The government has notified the ‘Electoral Bonds’ scheme that enables anyone to make anonymous donations to political parties. But will this scheme improve transparency in political funding?
Read our detailed story here

created: January 12, 2018


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Video falsely claims that an Islamic tomb is built in the premises of Gita Upadesh sthal in Kurukshetra - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
May 12, 2022
A social media post accompanying a video, visuals of which show a tomb like structure in a Hindu temple premises is being widely circulated. The video is being shared with a claim that the visuals show an Islamic tomb built in ‘Gita Upadesh sthal’ in Kurukshetra, with an intent to encroach the temple. Through this article let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: An Islamic tomb is built inside the premises of ‘Gita Upadesh sthal’ in Kurukshetra.
Fact: The viral visuals does not show any Islamic tomb in the premises of ‘Gita Upadesh sthal’ in Kurukshetra but is a bhorkha, built by a Hindu brahmin family in memory of their ancestors. News reports confirmed the same. Further, as per the news reports some miscreants have placed a chadar (with 786’ & ‘Jai Pir Babe Di’ written on it) on the structure and made the video viral on WhatsApp with communal claim. Even the administrative and police officials have confirmed that the structure indeed belongs to a Hindu brahmin family. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
The viral visuals show the Gita Upadesh sthal in Kurukshetra, as the visuals of the viral video are similar to official visuals of the place.
However, the tomb like structure shown in the viral video is not an Islamic tomb but a structure built by a Hindu family many years ago in memory of their ancestors. Reverse image search of the screenshots of the viral video led us to a news article which reported a news about some miscreants placing a blue sheet (chaddar) on a bhorkha (Hindu tomb like structure built in memory of those who die unmarried) in Kurukshetra.
This article published an image of the structure similar to the one shown in the viral video. Comparison of both these visuals can be seen below. However, the article reports that it is not Islamic structure. Further as per the article, some miscreants have placed a chaddar (786’ & ‘Jai Pir Babe Di’ written on it) on a bhorkha, which belongs to ancestors of Pandit Aatpal, built thirty years ago.
Another news article that reported police confirming that the shrine was built by a Hindu Brahmin family can be read here. Thus it is evident that the structure claimed to be Islamic is indeed a Hindu structure.
Further, Aaj Tak in its article reported that the viral clip does not show any Islamic tomb but a Hindu Bhorkha. Aaj Tak confirmed this contacting Vinod Sharma, whose ancestors built this structure. Vinod Sharma confirmed that he is a Brahmin, and the structure was built by his family members many years ago in the memory of his ancestors.
Moreover, in their correspondence with Aaj Tak, the administrative and police officials have ruled out the claim of Islamic structure in Gita Upadesh Sthal. The police reiterated that their investigation found that the structure was built by a Brahmin family living in a nearby village in the memory of their ancestors
To sum it up, this video falsely claims that an Islamic tomb is built in the premises of Gita Upadesh sthal in Kurukshetra.
Update (13 MAY 2022):
When we contacted the Jyotisar Police officials regarding the viral claim, they informed us that the structure in the video is not related to Islam or Muslims but belongs to Hindus. They confirmed that some miscreants had placed an Islamic cloth on the structure to spread fake news. Further, they told us that the structure is now shifted. Several social media users have shared the visuals of the place after the structure has been shifted. (Note: Social media users mentioned in these posts that the ‘mazar’ has been removed, which is not true as it belongs to Hindus). Some of those posts can be seen here, here, and here.


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Video from 2022 West Bengal Municipal elections is being shared as evidence of rigging in the recently held 2024 Lok Sabha elections in Hyderabad by AIMIM - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
May 15, 2024
Update (23 May 2024): The same video (archive) is now being shared with claim that the BJP is rigging the 2024 general elections. However, as debunked in the article, the visuals are from the 2022 municipal elections in West Bengal and show a polling agent casting votes on behalf of others at Booth 106 of Ward 33 in South Dum Dum, West Bengal.
A video (here, here, here, & here) showing a man casting votes for others in a polling booth is being widely shared on social media, claiming that the video shows how AIMIM rigged the votes in the recently held 2024 Lok Sabha elections in Bahadurpura, Hyderabad. Let us fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video showing rigging by AIMIM in Hyderabad’s Bahadurpura during the recently held 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
Fact: This viral video shows visuals of a rigging incident that occurred during the 2022 municipal elections in West Bengal. According to news reports, these visuals show a polling agent casting votes on behalf of others at Booth 106 of Ward 33 in South Dum Dum, West Bengal. This video has nothing to do with the recently concluded 2024 Lok Sabha elections in Hyderabad. There have been no credible reports of any incidents of rigging occurring in Hyderabad during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Hence, the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
There have been no credible reports of any unlawful activities or incidents of rigging in Hyderabad during the recently held 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
To gather information about the viral video, we conducted a Google reverse image search using its keyframes. We discovered that the same video was published by TV9 Bangla on their YouTube channel on 27 February 2022. According to this video report, the incident took place in a polling booth at Lakeview School in Ward 33 of South Dum Dum Municipality in West Bengal.
During this search, we also discovered that the same visuals were shared by the official X(Twitter) handles of the West Bengal BJP and West Bengal Congress. Both parties alleged that the incident was perpetrated by the Trinamool Congress (TMC).
A further search using this clue led us to several Bengali news reports about this incident (here, here, and here). According to these reports, in February 2022, municipal elections were held in 108 municipalities across West Bengal. Widespread violence, rigging, and clashes with the police were reported from various parts of West Bengal. The visuals in the viral video are reported to be from booth number 106 in Ward 33 of the South Dum Dum Municipality in West Bengal. From this information, it is evident that the viral video shows visuals of rigging that occurred during the 2022 municipal elections in West Bengal.
The Chief Electoral Officer of Telangana has also issued a statement (here, here and here) clarifying that the viral video is from 2022 in West Bengal and is unrelated to the 2024 Parliament elections in Telangana. The CEO has also urged users to refrain from sharing misinformation.
Factly previously debunked this video when it went viral, linking it to the 2022 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections and the 2023 Karnataka Assembly elections (here).
To sum up, a video from the 2022 West Bengal Municipal elections is being shared as evidence of rigging in the recently held 2024 Lok Sabha elections in Hyderabad’s Bahadurpura by the AIMIM.
This article has been updated on 16 May 2024 to include the clarification by Chief Electoral Officer of Telangana.


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Video from a local fight in Uttarakhand is shared as Hindus reaction to the Udaipur murder - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
July 5, 2022
In light of the murder of a Hindu tailor in Udaipur, a video through a post is being widely shared on social media claiming that the brawl was a reaction by Hindus in Udaipur. Let us fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video showing reaction of Hindus against the beheading incident in Udaipur.
Fact: The video is from a fight in Rishikesh, Uttarakhand. The fight broke out in Rishikesh area between local rafters and some other people who came to park their car. The Pauri Garhwal Police said that action was taken against the people involved in the incident. A Hindu tailor named Kanhaiyalal was brutally murdered in Udaipur by two Muslim men. Protests against the murder continued in parts of Rajasthan. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When reverse image search is done on the screenshots of the video, a video with similar visuals was found in a tweet. According to the tweet, the visuals in the video were from Laxman Jhula Bazaar, Rishikesh in Uttarakhand, where there was a brawl among people visiting the area. Uttarakhand Police had replied to tweet, requesting the Pauri Garhwal Police to take appropriate action. The Pauri Garhwal Police said that action was taken against the people involved in the incident. The fight broke out in Rishikesh area between local rafters and some people who came to park their car. Raft paddles can also be seen in the viral video.
टैक्सी स्टैंड लक्ष्मण झूला के पास गाड़ी खड़ी करने को लेकर स्थानीय राफ्ट चलाने वाले तथा शामली से घूमने आए कुछ लड़कों के बीच मारपीट तथा कहासुनी हो गई थी किसी भी पक्ष द्वारा तहरीर नही दी गयी।  पुलिस द्वारा 04 व्यक्तियों थाने लाकर 81 पुलिस एक्ट के अंतर्गत चालान की कार्रवाई की गईः-
A Hindu tailor named Kanhaiyalal was brutally murdered in Udaipur by Muslim men as he posted on social media, supporting Nupur Sharma. Protests against the murder continued in parts of Rajasthan. However, we could not find any such videos of fighting by Hindus in Udaipur recently.
To sum it up, video from a local fight in Uttarakhand is shared as Hindus reaction to the Udaipur murder.


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Video from anti-hijab protests in London shared as Hindus assaulting the accused in Hindu temple attack in Birmingham - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
October 10, 2022
A video is being widely shared on social media claiming it as the visuals of Hindus assaulting Muhammed Rizwan, the accused in the attack on a Hindu temple in Birmingham city of England. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of Hindus in England assaulting the accused in the attack on a Hindu temple in Birmingham.
Fact: The video shared in the post shows the visuals of anti-hijab protests in London over Mahsa Amini’s custodial death in Iran. This video shows demonstrators assaulting a man near the Kilburn district in London’s northwest. The video is not related to the alleged Muslim attacks on Hindu temples in Birmingham. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search of the screenshots of the video, a video with similar visuals are found in a Facebook post published on 25 September 2022. The description of the post states, “A supporter of the Islamic Republic was beaten by protesters in the London Islamic Center”. Several other Facebook users and websites published this video with a similar description in September 2022. They can be seen here and here.
When we searched for further sources using relevant keywords on the internet, we found the same video in an article published by the ‘news.com.au’ website on 28 September 2022. This article reported it as the visuals of a man being hauled to a police van after being pelted with objects by demonstrators during a protest over Mahsa Amini’s death. This incident reportedly took place near the Kilburn district in London’s northwest. A few other news websites have also published articles reporting the anti-hijab protestors’ attacks outside the Islamic centre in London.
On 20 September 2022, a group of around 200 masked men held demonstrations outside the Durga Bhawan temple in the Smethwick area of Birmingham. The protest was reportedly called by a local Muslim group against a planned visit of a Hindu activist from India to the Durga Bhawan temple in Birmingham. A few videos showing the visuals of Muslim groups protesting outside the Durga Bhawan in Birmingham can be seen here, here and here. West Midland Police through a tweet informed the media and public that following a minor disorder during this protest, an 18-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of possessing a knife. West Midland police did not reveal the identity of the arrested youth. We could not find any latest news report confirming the Hindus’ attacking the accused in the Durga Bhawan temple attack in Birmingham.
Earlier, when a video showing anti-hijab protestors clashing with London police was being shared as the Hindu-Muslim fight visuals, Factly published a fact-check article debunking that claim.
To sum it up, a video showing anti-hijab demonstrators thrashing a man in London shared as the visuals of Hindus assaulting the accused in the Hindu temple attack in Birmingham.

created: October 10, 2022


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Video from Bangladesh falsely shared as ‘Old Muslim man stripped and beaten by Hindutva goons in India’ - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 5, 2020
A video of an old man being dragged and stripped naked by a person in public is doing rounds on social media claiming that the ‘Hindutva goons’ are doing so to a Muslim man in India. FACTLY has found that the incident in the video is related to Bangladesh, not India. The incident took place at Chakaria Upazila of Cox’s Bazar district on 24 May 2020. The video shows Awami League local leader Nurul Alam (72) being dragged and stripped by Jobo League local leader Ansur Alam (35). The victim ’s son Ashraf Hossain filed a case with the Chakaria Police Station regarding the incident. Ashraf alleged that Arej Khatun and Badiul Alam are the instigators as they have a long-standing enmity with their family and it is the cause of the incident.
Sources:
Claim –
1. Facebook post (archived)
Fact –
1. News article – https://www.latestbdnews.com/politics-news/123983/
2. News article – https://www.bangla.24livenewspaper.com/bangladesh/62576-juboleague-leader-expelled
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Video from Bangladesh shared as visuals of Muslims thrashing Hindus in front of a Mosque in India - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
May 13, 2022
A video is being shared on social media claiming it as visuals of five Muslims brutal attack on a group of Hindus in front of a Mosque in India. A few WhatsApp users have shared this video claiming it was an incident from Hubli, Karnataka. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of Muslims thrashing a group of Hindus in front of a Mosque in Hubli, Karnataka.
Fact: The video shared in the post shows a recent incident that took place in Bangladesh. This video shows Touhidi Janata supporters in Bangladesh assaulting a group of Muslim youth celebrating Eid by playing music through loud music speakers in a moving truck. The Karnataka State Police fact-check team published an article clarifying that this incident had taken place in Bangladesh, not in front of a Mosque in Karnataka’s Hubli. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search of the screenshots in the video, a video with similar visuals was found published by a few Bangladesh news channels recently. They can be seen here, here, and here. These news channels reported it as the visuals of Touhidi Janata supporters in Bangladesh thrashing a group of men for celebrating Eid by playing loudspeakers in a moving truck.
Touhidi Janata, a group of supporters of an Islam took the initiative to prevent obscene celebrations during the Eid. On 06 May 2022, Maulana Nazrul Islam Siraji from Bangladesh shared the same video on his YouTube channel and spoke about the incident. Several youth in different places of Bangladesh were arrested or penalized for playing loud DJ songs and making obscene gestures during the Eid celebrations. Bangladeshi news articles that reported these incidents can be seen here and here.
When this video went viral as an incident from Hubli, the Karnataka State Police Fact-Check team published an article clarifying that the video is from Bangladesh. From all these pieces of evidence, it can be concluded that the video shared in the post shows an incident that took place in Bangladesh and both sides involved in the incident belong to the same (Muslim) community.
To sum it up, a video from Bangladesh is shared as visuals of Muslims thrashing Hindus in front of a Mosque in India.


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Video from Brazil shared as visuals of police arresting a terrorist in Srinagar - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
August 16, 2021
A video is being shared on social media claiming it as the live visuals of police personnel apprehending a terrorist in Srinagar. Sharing the same video, another user mentioned it as the visuals of Uttar Pradesh police catching a thief in Ghaziabad. Amid the recent reports on the Indian army arresting a Hizbul Mujahideen terrorist in Jammu and Kashmir, this post is being shared on social media.  Let’s verify the claims made in the post.
Claim: Video of Srinagar police arresting a terrorist.
Fact: The video shared in the post shows Brazil police personnel arresting a 17-year-old young biker for violating the traffic rules. The incident took place on 01 August 2021 at Perola city in Brazil. This video has nothing to do with the Srinagar police. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search of the screenshots in the video, similar visuals were found in a video published by ‘Paraná no Ar’ news channel, on 03 August 2021. ‘Paraná no Ar’ is a news program that is telecast regularly on the Brazil-based ‘ricmais’ news channel. This video reported it as the visuals of Brazil police catching a young biker in Perola, Brazil. This incident reportedly took place on 01 August 2021.
Reporting the complete details of this incident, the ‘ricmais’ news website had published an article on 02 August 2021. This article reported that a 17-year-old young motorcyclist was arrested for disobeying and escaping from the Perola Military police. According to the article, Perola Military police were carrying out patrolling while a young motorcyclist tried to accelerate and escape the police car in a suspicious manner. Perola police personnel chased and caught the motorcyclist at Pearl Avenue Byington. When the boy was about to flee again on foot, a police officer knocked him down with a flying kick.
The young boy was arrested with the charges of driving without a license, disobeying stop orders, dangerous driving, driving the wrong way. Reporting the details of this incident, several news websites have published articles. They can be read here, here, and here. From all these pieces of evidence, it can be concluded that the video shared in the post shows an incident that took place in Brazil, not in the Indian city of Srinagar.
To sum it up, a video of an arrest in Brazil is shared as the visuals of police arresting a terrorist in Srinagar


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Video from Canada falsely shared as visuals of Pongal dinner hosted by UK PM Rishi Sunak in London - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
January 19, 2023
A video is being shared on social media claiming it as recent visuals showing the officials of the United Kingdom government eating traditional meals as part of the Pongal celebrations in London. Sharing the video, this post claims that UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak had hosted this Pongal dinner for the officials in London. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video showing the Pongal dinner hosted by UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in London.
Fact: The video shows the officials in Canada having a traditional Indian meal as part of the Pongal celebrations at Waterloo city in Ontario, Canada. Tamil Culture Waterloo Region, a community organization in Waterloo, hosted this traditional meal for Waterloo politicians, Mayors, Councillors, and Police staff, as part of the Pongal celebrations. The video has nothing to do with UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search of the screenshots of the video, a video with similar visuals was found tweeted by a user clarifying that the video is from Waterloo in Canada. Providing a link to the video published by ‘Tamil Culture Waterloo Region’ Facebook page, this Twitter user stated it was a video from the Pongal event hosted by the Tamil Association of Waterloo organisation for the City Mayor & Police staff. The ‘Tamil Culture Waterloo Region’ published this video on 15 January 2023, with the description, “TCA Tamil Thai Pongal Celebration (Tamil Thanksgiving) region of Waterloo politicians, Regional Chair City Mayors, Councillors and Police Chief and staff.”
When we searched further for other sources using this information, we found the tweets of Berry Vrbanovic, the Mayor of Kitchener city, sharing the photos from the Pongal celebrations event organized by the Tamil Culture Waterloo community. On 17 January 2023, Tim Louis, the Member of Parliament of Kitchener city, tweeted a video showing him and other officials having traditional Indian meals as part of the Pongal celebrations in Waterloo. Reporting the details of this video of Canadian officials celebrating Pongal in Waterloo, several news websites have recently published articles and videos.
Celebrated Tamil Thai Pongal with traditional food, music, and dance. What an amazing night – thank you Tamil Culture Waterloo Region for having me! Iniya Thai Pongal Vazthukal!@waterlootamils pic.twitter.com/vHC5sbe4b1
On 14 January 2023, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak tweeted a video wishing the UK Tamil community, and the Tamils around the world a happy Thai Pongal. But lately, there are no news reports about Rishi Sunak hosting a Pongal dinner to the UK Government officials in London. A few pictures of Pongal celebrations in the United Kingdom can be seen here.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak wishes the UK Tamil community, and Tamils all around the world a happy Thai Pongal 🌾
Here’s to an auspicious year ahead. pic.twitter.com/bIyTFAeAvG
To sum it up, a video of Canadian officials celebrating Pongal with traditional meals is shared as visuals of the Pongal dinner hosted by Rishi Sunak in London.

created: January 19, 2023


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Video from ‘Christmas Train of Lights’ event in Devon is shared as that of illuminated Tejas Express - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
January 4, 2022
A video is being shared on social media claiming it as the beautiful visuals of an illuminated Tejas Express train travelling from Mumbai to Goa. This post claims that Narendra Modi led BJP Government had conducted this beautiful light event as part of the New year 2022 celebrations. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of an illuminated Tejas Express train travelling from Mumbai to Goa.
Fact: The video shared in the post shows the first official run of the ‘Train fo Lights 2021’, an annual Christmas event conducted by the ‘Dartmouth Steam Railway and River Boat’ company in Devon, UK. This illuminated train journey starts at Queen’s Park station in Paignton. This video has nothing to do with the 2022 New Year celebrations in India. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search of the screenshots in the video, similar videos were found on YouTube describing it as the beautiful visuals of the Christmas Train of Lights in Paignton. They can be seen here and here. When we searched using these keywords, a similar video was found in an article published by ‘The McDowell News’ website on 02 December 2021. The description under the video states, “Mesmerizing footage captures the first official run of the ‘Train of Lights 2021’ as it passes through Goodrington in Devon, England”. This footage was reportedly captured by a professional photographer named Scott Williams.
‘The Christmas Train of Lights’ is an annual event conducted in Paignton sea town in Devon, UK. The ‘Dartmouth Steam Railway and River Boat’ company had started organizing this annual Christmas event in 2018. This illuminated train journey starts at Queen’s Park Station in  Paignton and passes through the 450-metre Greenway tunnel that leads to the enchanted forest and river Dart. After a turnaround at Kingswear and with the opportunity to disembark and take photographs from the platform, the train returns to Paignton which allows passengers to experience the spectacle from a different direction. The visuals of the ‘Christmas Train of Light’ event conducted in 2019 can be seen here and here.
To sum it up, a video of ‘Christmas Train of Lights’ event in Devon is shared as visuals of illuminated Tejas Express travelling from Mumbai to Goa.

created: January 4, 2022


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Video from Haryana shared as visuals of Muslims assaulting a Hindu in Rajasthan - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
May 10, 2022
A video is being shared on social media claiming it as visuals of Muslims brutally assaulting a Hindu youth in Jodhpur city of Rajasthan. This post accuses the Ashok Gehlot-led Rajasthan government of intentionally shutting down the internet in Jodhpur so that Muslims could kill Hindus publicly without any evidence. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of Muslims brutally assaulting a Hindu in Jodhpur, Rajasthan.
Fact: The video shared in the post shows a recent incident that took place in the Yamunanagar district of Haryana. On 01 May 2022, a group of 10 to 12 men brutally injured a truck driver over a monetary issue in Sultanpur village of Yamunanagar district. The personal enmity between two persons has led to this attack. There is no communal angle in the incident. The video has nothing to do with Rajasthan. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search of the screenshots in the video, photos with similar visuals were found in an article published by the ‘Amar Ujala’ news website on 01 May 2022. ‘Amar Ujala’ reported that on 01 May 2021, a mob of 10 to 12 men, armed with sticks and swords, brutally assaulted a truck driver in Sultanpur village of Yamunanagar district in Haryana. The victim Kamaljit Singh had reportedly received grievous injuries on his face, arms and legs during this incident.
Reporting the complete details of the incident, ‘The Times of India’ published an article on 02 May 2022. According to the article, the mob has attacked Kamaljit Singh over a monetary issue with a Kanipla village resident Ricky. Speaking about the incident, Kamaljit told police that about 10 days before the attack, he had a verbal spat with the Kanipla village resident Ricky over a monetary issue. Kamaljit Singh said, “At about 11 am, about 10 men came in two cars, who were armed with sticks, swords, iron pipes and sharp-edged weapons. Ricky was holding a sword in his hand and upon seeing them, I tried to run from the shop, but the men entered the shop and attacked me. They attacked me with a sword on my legs and in an attempt to murder me, they continued to beat me brutally. They also attacked me in my head, and I cried for help. When people started to gather, accused men fled away in their cars while threatening to kill me“.
On 03 May 2022, Yamunanagar Police through a tweet informed that the two accused in the Kamaljit Singh’s assault case were arrested. Yamunanagar Police mentioned the arrested persons names as Ricky and Ishaq Khan. The ‘Vishwas News’ fact-checking team has contacted Sadhura police station for more clarification regarding the communal angle linked to the incident. The Sadhura police officials told ‘Vishwas News’ that the mutual enmity between the two sides has led to this attack and clarified that there is no communal angle in the incident.
To sum it up, the video of a man brutally beaten over a monetary issue in Haryana is shared as visuals of Muslims assaulting a Hindu in Rajasthan.


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Video from Hong Kong shared as Police brutality on suspected COVID-19 patients in China - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
March 17, 2020
A video is being widely shared with the claim that it shows Police in China taking into custoday suspected COVID-19 patients in the country. Let’s check the authenticity of that claim made in the post.
Video of Police in China taking into control suspected COVID-19 patients in the country.
Fact: The video shows Police in Hong Kong taking into control demonstrators who were protesting against the introduction of a controversial bill that would have allowed extraditions to mainland China. So, the claim isFALSE.
When keyframes of the video were run through reverse image search, search results were obtained about clashes between Police and protestors in Hong Kong. As per the article in ‘The Guardian’, the incident in the video is part of the clashes that broke out between the Hong Kong Police and the demonstrators who were protesting against a controversial bill that would have allowed extraditions to mainland China. The video shows Police arresting the demonstrators who were vandalizing a Mass Transit Railway station ‘Prince Edward’ in August 2019. The same information can also be seen in the article of ‘BBC’.
The novel Coronavirus was first reported in the last week of December 2019. So, the video is of an incident that took place 3 months before the outbreak of Coronavirus in China.
To sum it up, a video showing Hong Kong Police crackdown on the protestors is being shared as Police taking suspected COVID-19 patients into control in China.
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Video from Indonesia shared as the visuals of Meitei men stealing the empty houses of the Kuki community people in Manipur’s Imphal - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
August 25, 2023
A video is being shared on social media claiming it is the visuals of Meitei community people stealing the houses belonging to the Kuki community people in Manipur’s Imphal. The video shows the collapse of an empty roof-sheeted house as a group of men attempt to transport the house along a road. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of Meitei men stealing the houses belonging to the Kuki community people in Imphal, Manipur.
Fact: The video shared in the post is from Indonesia. The video is not from Manipur’s Imphal and has nothing to do with the Meitei and Kuki communities. Hence, the claim made in the post is False.
On reverse image search of the screenshots of the video, the same video was found published by a YouTube channel on 12 August 2023. This YouTube channel described it as a video from Indonesia. Many Indonesia-based news sites, Facebook and Instagram handles shared the video mentioning that the visuals show people following an old tradition of moving houses.
On observing the video carefully, one could see Indonesian national flags hoisted on either side of the road on which the group of men attempted to transport the house.
The Bugis Sulawesi tribe, along with several other tribes in Indonesia, have a longstanding custom of collaboratively relocating houses, known as “Mappalette Bola.” Old videos of indigenous people in Indonesia relocating their houses can be seen here, here, and here. From all these pieces of evidence, it can be concluded that the video shared in the post is from Indonesia, not from Imphal in Manipur.
To sum it up, a video from Indonesia is shared as the visuals of Meitei men stealing the empty houses of the Kuki community people in Manipur’s Imphal.


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Video from Italy shared as ‘COVID-19 ward closed in New Zealand after treating the final patient’ - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 12, 2020
A video is being shared widely on Facebook claiming that it shows the closure of Coronavirus ward in New Zealand after treating the final patient in the country. In the video, medical staff can be seen in jubilant mood coming out of the ward, removing their head caps and gathering outside the ward. Then, two of the staff close the doors of that ward and the rest of them can be seen clapping. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Video of Coronavirus ward being closed in New Zealand after the treatment of the last patient in the country.
Fact: The video shows a Coronavirus ward being closed at a hospital in Matera, Italy. While it is true that New Zealand has announced zero active COVID-19 cases in the country recently, the video is not related to New Zealand. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When the screenshots of the video were subjected to reverse image search technique, the same video was found on a Facebook page – ‘Matera News’. The video was posted with the description that it shows a Coronavirus ward being closed at ‘Madonna delle Grazie’ hospital in Matera. Matera is a city in the Basilicata region of Italy. When searched with the hospital name (‘Madonna delle Grazie’) mentioned in the page, many similar videos were obtained in the results.
Also, a nurse (‘Infermiere’) from that hospital shared the same video and a screenshot of a news article on his profile.  The same information about the video can be also seen in an article of the Italian newspaper ‘Il Riformista’.
Recently, New Zealand reported zero active Coronavirus cases in the country, but the video is not related to New Zealand.
To sum it up, a video from Italy is being shared as ‘Coronavirus ward closed in New Zealand after treating the final patient’.
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Video from Jordan falsely shared as ‘Muslim leader recovered from COVID-19 in Pakistan died due to accidental firing during celebration’ - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 28, 2020
A video is being widely shared on social media claiming that a Muslim leader recovered from COVID-19 in Pakistan had died due to bullets fired accidentally during the celebrations on his return home. But, FACTLY has found that the video is related to an incident in Jordan, not Pakistan. In Amrawah town of Jordan, Sari Salem Wardat, a person who was set free from jail has died in celebratory gunfire by his cousin. Sari, who had been serving eight months prison sentence, was released two weeks early in line with Jordan government’s measures to combat the spread of the COVID-19.
Sources:
Claim – Facebook post (archived)
Fact –
1. News article – https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/04/jordan-man-killed-day-released-prison-200417121506809.html
2. News article – https://noticias.caracoltv.com/coronavirus-covid-19/salio-de-prision-por-emergencia-del-covid-19-y-su-primo-lo-mato-por-error-al-celebrar-su-liberacion-nid226970-ie134
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Video from Karnataka’s Kalaburagi shared as the visuals of a man threatening to attack people with a knife in Uttar Pradesh - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
February 23, 2023
A video is being shared on social media claiming it is the visuals of a person threatening to attack people and police with a knife in a crowded public place in Uttar Pradesh. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of a person threatening to attack people and police with a knife in Uttar Pradesh.
Fact: The incident shown in the video took place on 05 February 2023, in the crowded market area in Kalaburagi, Karnataka. The accused, Mohammed Fazal Jafar, was shot, given treatment and later arrested by the Kalaburagi police. The video has nothing to do with Uttar Pradesh. Hence, the claim made in the post is False.
On reverse image search of the screenshots in the video, a video with similar visuals was found tweeted by the ‘Indian Express’ journalist Kiran Parashar on 06 February 2023. Kiran Parashar tweeted the video with the description, “#Karnataka Police open fire at a man who threatened and tried to attack public with knives in Kalaburgi. While the talks failed, police opened fire at his leg. The arrested is Jaffer and probe underway”. ‘The News Minute’ published the same video with the title, “Karnataka police opens fire at man brandishing knife | Kalaburagi”.
#Karnataka
Police open fire at a man who threatened and tried to attack public with knives in Kalaburgi. While the talks failed, police opened fire at his leg. The arrested is Jaffer and probe underway. @IndianExpress pic.twitter.com/kgM9iXpKzo
Reporting the complete details of the incident, ‘The Indian Express’ and many other news websites have published articles. As per these reports, Mohammed Fazal Jafar, a fruit vendor and resident of Kalaburagi, threatened to attack locals with a knife around 9 pm on 05 February 2023 in the Kalaburagi market area. Upon receiving information from the public, the Kalaburagi police immediately reached the spot. When the accused tried to attack them with the knife, in an act of self-defence and for the safety of the public, police officials reportedly opened fire at him and injured him. He was given treatment and later taken into police custody.
Speaking to the media, Kalaburagi Commissioner said, “Control room received a call about Fazal roaming with knives and threatening the general public. As police reached the spot, they asked him to drop the weapons but he was trying to attack the public near a supermarket. When he did not listen to the police and tried to attack, the police opened fire at his leg.” From all these pieces of evidence, it can be concluded that the video shared in the post shows an incident in Karnataka but not Uttar Pradesh as claimed in the post.
To sum it up, a video from Karnataka’s Kalaburagi was shared as the visuals of a man threatening people with a knife in Uttar Pradesh.

created: February 23, 2023


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Video from Lahore (Pakistan) falsely shared as related to a hospital in Old city – Hyderabad (India). - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 25, 2020
A video of people lying on beds outside a hospital is being shared on social media with a claim that it shows the condition of a hospital in the Old City – Hyderabad (India). But, FACTLY has found that the video is related to a fire accident at the emergency ward of Services Hospital in Lahore (Pakistan) on 13 June 2020. The video shows the evacuated patients after a fire broke out in the emergency ward. Multiple news articles regarding the incident can be read here and here. Also, similar visuals of the Services Hospital (Lahore) building as shown in the video can be found on Google Maps. So, the video has no connection to the Old City (Hyderabad).
Post: Facebook (archived)
Sources:
Fact –
1. ‘Gulf News’ article – https://gulfnews.com/world/asia/pakistan/pakistan-video-of-patients-waiting-outside-after-lahore-hospital-catches-fire-causes-confusion-online-1.1592321600347
2. ‘The Nation’ article – https://nation.com.pk/14-Jun-2020/woman-dies-during-evacuation-as-fire-erupts-in-services-hospital
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Video from Mumbai shared as the visuals of Ganesh Utsav celebrations in Tamil Nadu - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
October 3, 2023
A video is being shared on social media claiming it is the visuals of Ganesh Utsav celebrations in Tamil Nadu. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video showing Ganesh utsav celebrations in Tamil Nadu.
Fact: The video shared in the post shows the celebrations during the arrival of Chinchpokli Chintamani Ganapati in Mumbai. The video has nothing to do with Tamil Nadu. Hence, the claim made in the post is False.
On observing the video carefully, one could see the text “You are at Chintamani Aagman” and ‘@rohiitt0.7’ at the bottom middle of the video. Many users in the comment section mentioned that the video shows the arrival of Chintamani Ganpati in Mumbai.
When searched for further details of the video using this information, we found the same video published on the Instagram account of Rohit Mali (user_id: ‘@rohiitt0.7’). Rohit Mali, a cinematographer and artist from Mumbai, posted this video on 09 September 2023, with the description, “Chinchpoklicha Chintamani 2023”.
A post shared by Rohit Mali (@rohiitt0.7)
The Ganesh pandal set up by the Chinchpokli Sarvjanik Utsav Mandal in the Chinchpokli area of Mumbai is famously called ‘Chinchpokli Cha Chintamani’. Lately, many Facebook users and news sites published videos showing the arrival of Chinchpokli Chintamani Ganpati in Mumbai.
A post shared by Loksatta (@loksattalive)
Speaking to Aaj Tak, Rohit Mali confirmed that the video was shot by him on 09 September 2023 during the arrival of Chintamani Ganpati near the Lal Baugh area in Mumbai. More photos and videos taken during the arrival of Chinchpokli Chintamani Ganpati can be seen here and here. From all these pieces of evidence, it can be concluded that the video shared in the post is from Mumbai city of Maharashtra, not from Tamil Nadu as mentioned in the post.
To sum it up, a video from Mumbai was shared as the visuals of Ganesh Utsav celebrations in Tamil Nadu.

created: October 3, 2023


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Video from 2022 municipal elections in Bengal is shared as proof of rigging in the recently concluded elections - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
May 16, 2023
Update (16 May 2023):The same video is being shared again after the conclusion of recent assembly elections in Karnataka claiming that it shows fraud committed in a polling booth during voting. However, as explained below, the visuals are from the 2022 municipal elections in West Bengal.
Published (11 March 2022):
A video through a post is being widely shared on social media claiming that BJP rigged the recent state assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh. Let us fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video shows BJP rigging the 2022 assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh.
Fact: The visuals are from the recent municipal elections in West Bengal, not from UP. According to reports, the visuals of an agent casting the votes of others is from the 106 booth in ward 33 of South Dumdum municipality. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When reverse image search is done on the screenshots of the video with relevant keywords, the visuals of the same video were found on YouTube. The YouTube channel, TV9BanglaLive, had uploaded the video on 27 February 2022, stating that the visuals were taken during the 2022 West Bengal local body elections. According to this video report, the visuals of an agent casting the vote of others is from a booth in ward 33 of South Dumdum Municipality at Lakeview school.
Later, the same visuals were shared by the official Twitter handles of BJP and Congress in West Bengal, alleging that it was done by Trinamool Congress (TMC).
Recently, elections to 108 municipalities were held in West Bengal. Visuals of unrest, violence, and vote-rigging were reported by various news outlets and on social media platforms. The visuals in the viral video are reported to be from the 106 booth number of ward 33 in the South Dumdum Municipality.
To sum it up, a video from municipal elections in Bengal is shared as proof of rigging by BJP in the recently concluded 2022 UP assembly elections.


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Video from Nepal falsely shared as visuals of the glacial burst in Chamoli (Uttarakhand) - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
February 9, 2021
A video is being shared on social media with a claim that it shows the glacial burst in Chamoli (Uttarakhand) on 07 February 2021. Let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of the glacial burst in Chamoli (Uttarakhand) on 07 February 2021.
Fact: The posted video is not related to the recent glacial burst in Chamoli (Uttarakhand). The video was taken near Kapuche Glacier Lake in Nepal. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When the screenshots of the video were run through Google Reverse Image Search, the same video was found to be uploaded by multiple users in January 2021. A user Kiran Shrestha has uploaded a similar video on his YouTube channel with the title – ‘Kapuche lake 2021 (avalanche)’.
Kapuche Glacier Lake is in Nepal. The location in the video also matches with the Kapuche Glacier Lake visuals on Google Maps.
Also, ‘BBC News – Nepali’ has published an article in January 2021 on the same video posted by Kiran Shrestha.
Some of the actual visuals related to the glacier burst in Chamoli (Uttarakhand) can be seen here, here, and here.
#WATCH | Water level in Dhauliganga river rises suddenly following avalanche near a power project at Raini village in Tapovan area of Chamoli district. #Uttarakhand pic.twitter.com/syiokujhns
To sum it up, a video from Nepal falsely shared as visuals of the glacial burst in Chamoli (Uttarakhand).

created: February 9, 2021


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Video from Pakistan is being falsely shared as Indian security forces torturing Muslims in Kashmir - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
September 23, 2019
A video purportedly showing a few men in black t-shirts with text ‘Police’ on them, beating few women in a house is being shared widely on Facebook with the claim that the video is of Indian security forces beating and torturing Muslims in Kashmir. Let’s try to analyze the claim made in the post.
The video was posted a month ago onFacebook but it is again being shared now.
Video of Indian security forces beating and torturing Muslims in Kashmir
Fact: The video is from Pakistan. The Sindh Province Police have said that it is a fake video that was designed by a few individuals to malign the reputation of Sindh Police. So, the claim is FALSE.
When the video in the post was run through ‘InVid’ plugin, several keyframes were obtained. When these keyframes are subjected to Yandex reverse image search, a search result led to a YouTube video uploaded on May 6, 2019, and it had the title ‘Sindh Police attack on innocent Women at Sindh | Pakistan’.
Another search result was also foundsuggesting that the video is from Sindh, Pakistan. So, when looked for further information on the Twitter account of ‘Sindh Police’, a tweet with the news video regarding the same clip was found. The tweet had the following message- ‘Few Days back a video was made viral on Social media in which People in police uniform were shown torturing women while raiding a house.This video proved fake and it was designed to malign Sindh Police in general and Jamshoro Police in particular.’
To conclude, a video from Pakistan is being falsely shared as Indian security forces beating and torturing Muslims in Kashmir.
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created: September 23, 2019


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Video from ‘Police Training College’ in Pakistan is falsely shared as terrorists infiltrating India in PoK - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
September 5, 2019
On social media, a video of few men with backpacks and holding guns is being shared widely with the claim- ‘terrorists protected by PAK army are currently waiting in a Pok launchpad to infiltrate into India to launch terror strikes’. Let’s try to check the veracity of the claim made in the post
Video of terrorists protected by Pakistan army waiting at a PoK launchpad.
Fact: The video is shot at a Police Training College in Kohat of Pakistan. Hence, the claim that terrorists were waiting at a launchpad in ‘Pakistan occupied Kashmir’(PoK) stands FALSE.
The sight of a man in Pakistan Police uniform at -0:25 duration and the men with luggage and backpacks suggesting them to be at some ‘training camp’ makes the claim fishy.
In the Facebook post, the user went on to write that, a ‘tweet’ from a Twitter user even confirmed the same thing he had claimed. When one goes through the comments section of that tweet, a certain user has written that the video was shot at ‘Kohat Police Center’ in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
A search on ‘Google maps’ confirmed the presence of a Police training centre at Kohat in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the name of the academy was found to be ‘Police Training College’.
When ones goes through the ‘Photo Gallery’ section in the dashboard of the academy’s website, a photo of the building that resembles the one seen in the video was found.
In the collage, it can be seen that the colour of the building, the pattern of balcony grills(yellow indicators), and the design of the high walls(red indicators) in both the photos are same.
Though the true purpose of the men seen in the video cannot be ascertained, the above findings lead us to the conclusion that the video was actually shot in the premises of Police Training College at Kohat of Pakistan and not in ‘Pakistan occupied Kashmir’(PoK) as claimed in the post.
Did you watch our new Episode of the DECODE series on Indian Rivers?

created: September 5, 2019


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Video from Punjab (India) is falsely shared as a Sikh getting beaten in Pakistan - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
March 17, 2022
A video is being shared on social media with a claim that it shows the condition of Sikhs in Pakistan. In the video, a man is seen getting badly beaten by another person. Let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video shows a Sikh getting badly beaten in Pakistan.
Fact: The video is not related to Pakistan. The incident in the video took place in Punjab (India). Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When we searched for the video on the internet with some Punjabi keywords, a similar video was found to be uploaded by a YouTube channel. It is mentioned in the video that the incident took place under Tibba police station limits in Ludhiana (Punjab).
The ‘Sikh Sangat Uttrakhand’ Facebook page has posted a live video on 05 March 2022 regarding the incident. In the video, the Punjab Police told the anchor that the incident took place on 01 March 2022 under Tibba police station limits. The FIR filed on the incident can be seen here. The person getting beaten in the video allegedly tried to steal a phone.
Some Sikhs are demanding action on the person who can be seen mercilessly beating the Sikh person in the viral video. The videos related to those requests can be seen here, here, and here.
To sum it up, a video from Punjab (India) is falsely shared as a Sikh getting beaten in Pakistan.


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Video from Rajasthan is being falsely shared as ‘NRC eviction started in Assam’ - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
January 20, 2020
A post with a video is being widely shared on social media with a claim that police are evicting people out of their homes in Assam after the NRC (National Register of Citizens). Let’s analyze the claim made in the post.
Video of police evicting people out of their homes in Assam after the NRC.
Fact: The video is related to an anti-encroachment drive taken up by Jaipur Development Authority (JDA). It shows people obstructing the anti-encroachment squad when they are trying to demolish the walls constructed illegally in a colony. Hence the claim is FALSE.
From the ‘DD News’ article, it can be found that the names of over 19 lakh people were excluded from the final NRC list of Assam.
In the video, the logo on the dress of the Policemen is not that of the Assam Police. It is the logo of the Rajasthan Police.
When the screenshots of the video are subjected to reverse image search with a suitable filter, a tweet with the same video but with another claim was found. The tweet had a reply of ‘Jaipur Police’ in its comments section. In that reply, Jaipur Police enclosed a newspaper clip that had a still from the video. From that clip, it was found that the Jaipur Development Authority (JDA) had taken up an anti-encroachment drive and has demolished the structures constructed illegally in a colony. It was also mentioned that people have put women in the forefront to thwart the attempts of the anti-encroachment squad during that drive. So, the video is related to an incident in Rajasthan and has nothing to do with NRC in Assam.
pic.twitter.com/wnZfpub654
To conclude, a video from Rajasthan is being falsely shared as ‘NRC eviction started in Assam’.
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created: January 20, 2020


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Video from Romania falsely shared as French Police action on Muslims for not wearing a mask - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
November 17, 2020
A video is being shared on social media claiming that Muslims without masks in the Paris Metro station are arrested by the France police. In the post, it claims that the French Police assaulted Muslims for spitting on other passengers in the metro train. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of French police assaulting Muslims for not wearing the Mask and spitting on other passengers.
Fact: This incident took place in Romania, not in France. Romanian police arrested a group of violent football team supporters on charges of assaulting the police personnel. Romanian police also seized illegal weapons from them. This video has nothing to do with the French police. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search of screenshots in the video, similar visuals were found in the videos shared in news articles published by many news websites during October 2020. In the article published by ‘DIGI 24’ news website, it is mentioned that this incident took place at Bucharest city in Romania. It is mentioned in the article that Romanian police arrested a group of violent football team supporters on charges of assaulting the police personnel who are in charge of managing the crowd at a football match. It is also reported that these arrested fans wore smoke guns with several knives which were seized by the Romanian police. Other articles about this incident can be seen here and here.
Romanian officials made social media posts about this incident which can be seen here and here. On comparing the ‘Stefan cel Mare’ metro station visuals, we could confirm that the train visuals in the video match with the Bucharest metro trains. Photos of the metro station can be seen here and here. There is no information about the religion of the violent supporters arrested in this incident.
To sum it up, an incident of police arresting youth in a metro station in Romania on charges of assaulting the police personnel is shared as the French Police attack on muslims for not wearing a mask in Metro Rail.

created: November 17, 2020


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Video from Russia shared as visuals of Muslims offering Namaz on the streets of France - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
May 10, 2022
A video is being shared on social media claiming it as recent visuals of thousands of Muslims offering Namaz on the streets of France. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of Muslims offering Namaz on the streets of France.
Fact: The video shared in the post shows thousands of Muslims offering Namaz outside the Moscow Cathedral Mosque in Russia. Every year, Muslims in Moscow offer prayers outside the Cathedral Mosque during Ramzan month. This video has nothing to do with France. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search of the screenshots shared in the post, the same video was found to be tweeted by Hammoud Al-Tuqi, a journalist and the editor-in-chief of  Al-Waha Magazine, on 03 May 2022. He reported it as the visuals of Eid Al-Fitr prayers in Moscow, Russia. When we searched for more credible sources using these keywords, we found the same video published on the ‘Yeni Safak’ and other Turkish news websites articles. They can be seen here and here. Sharing the video, these news websites reported it as the visuals of thousands of Muslims offering Eid prayers on the streets of Moscow. They reported that Muslims who could not fit into the Mosques have performed prayers outside using their prayer mats.
On observing the video carefully, one can notice a mosque with a golden tomb. Benjamin Strik, the director of the Centre for Information Resilience, has confirmed that the Mosque seen in the video is Moscow Cathedral Mosque in Russia. When we compared the pictures of the Moscow Cathedral Mosque with that of the structure seen in the video, it is confirmed that the video shows the prayers at the Moscow Cathedral Mosque in Russia.
In 2013, the ‘BBC World’ correspondent Olga Ivshina tweeted a similar picture of Muslim prayers on the streets in Moscow. A few other videos showing Eid prayers near the Moscow Cathedral Mosque can be seen here and here. Though we could not ascertain the exact date and time on which this video was taken, it can be confirmed that the video shared in the post shows an incident that took place in Russia’s Moscow.
To sum it up, a video that was taken in Russia’s Moscow is shared as visuals of Muslims offering Namaz on the streets of France.


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Video from South Africa passed off as Gir Lions surviving Cyclone Tauktae - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
May 24, 2021
A video accompanying a post is being widely shared on social media claiming that the Lions of Gir Forest in Gujarat have survived the recent Cyclone Tauktae. Let us fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of Lions in Gir Forest survived Cyclone Tauktae.
Fact: The video was shot at the MalaMala game reserve located within Sabi Sand Game Reserve, Mpumalanga province in South Africa on 13 February 2021, according to an Instagram post by the Game Reserve and several news articles. Gujarat officials who have posted that the video was in relation to Gir forest have apologised after sharing the video. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When we did reverse image search on the screenshots of the video, we found an Instagram post by MalaMala Game Reserve published on 13 February 2021, containing the same video. The Instagram post describes that this video was part of a Safari in MalaMala Game Reserve where they witnessed a Pride of Lions named Nkuhuma Pride and later another Pride of Lions named Kambula Pride. MalaMala Game Reserve is located within the Sabi Sand Game Reserve, Mpumalanga province in South Africa.
When we searched for news articles to find out about the claims made in the video, we found few news articles. The news article titled ‘Gujarat officials apologise after sharing video of lions from South Africa that claimed Gir lions are safe after Cyclone Tauktae’ confirms that the video was shot at a South African game reserve earlier this year. As Cyclone Tauktae ravaged several parts of Gujarat wreaking havoc in many coastal districts, people were also concerned about the wildlife in the state; the state forest department tried to allay the fears by tweeting out a video that claimed to show a pride of lions in Gir crossing a stream says the article. However, upon finding that the video was fake and is originally of African lions, the video was deleted, and apology was issued, according to the article. Articles regarding this incident can be seen here and here.
The video had even been tweeted by the Union Minister of Environment, Forest & Climate Change Prakash Javadekar saying that he was happy to know that lions are safe in Gir landscape post Tauktae Cyclone. However, the tweet attached to his post was later deleted. Dr. Rajiv Kumar Gupta, Additional Chief Secretary (Forest & Environment) for State Government of Gujarat had posted an apology letter through his Twitter post for the wrong video. It is regretted that a wrong video was posted along with a statement of lion safety in Gir landscape, Chief Wildlife Warden Shyamal Tikadar had apologised for his lapse and indiscretion, inconvenience, and confusion caused is sincerely regretted with an assurance for double caution in future, says the Twitter post.
It is regretted that a wrong video was posted along with statement of Lion safety in Gir landscape.PCCF(Wild Life)Sh Shyamal Tikadar has  apologised for his lapse & indiscretion.Inconvenience &confusion caused is sincerely regretted with an assurance for double caution in future. pic.twitter.com/ibs6n31LCU
Regarding the safety of Gir Lions post Tauktae Cyclone, the Gujarat State Forest Department had responded in its Twitter post. The forest department said the lions had moved to safety on their own during the storm, but no lions were missing. Other posts by the Gujarat State Forest Department regarding Gir lions’ status can be seen here and here. However, a few media reports quoting senior forest officials mentioned that 18 lions were reported missing from the coastal districts of Amreli, Gir Somnath, and Bhavnagar which bore the maximum brunt of the cyclone.
વનવિભાગે કહ્યું વાવાઝોડું આવતા સિંહો જાતે જ સલામત સ્થળે ખસી ગયા હતા, કોઈ સિંહ ગુમ થયા નથી https://t.co/oH2eSkame7
To sum it up, video from South Africa passed off as Gir Lions having survived Cyclone Tauktae.


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Video from Spain is passed off as Tauktae Cyclone in Gujarat - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
May 21, 2021
A video accompanying a post is being widely shared on social media claiming that the visuals of huge waves crashing onto the shore are related to Cyclone Tauktae in Somnath, Gujarat. Let us fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Visuals of Cyclone Tauktae from Somnath, Gujarat.
Fact: The video, according to many stock photos and earlier videos posted online, are from Spain. The visuals in the video are present online even before Cyclone Tauktae had hit Gujarat. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When a reverse image search of the screenshots of the video along with keywords is performed, we found some stock images on the website of iStock, resembling the ones in the post, with the title that the images were from San Sebastian Donostia, Spain. The images can be seen here, here, and here.
Taking this clue, we searched for any videos like the one in the post by using San Sebastian Waves as the keyword in google, we found a similar video uploaded in a website on 14 November 2019 with the title Giant waves in San Sebastian as Storm Bernardo hits Spain’s Basque Country.
There is even a YouTube video uploaded by the channel Luis Kapero on 24 January 2018. The video is titled Giant Waves Festival In San Sebastian- Big Waves in San Sebastian. The video is quite similar to the one being shared as from Gujarat and has the same background. The description of the video says that huge waves were breaking against the Paseo Nuevo in San Sebastian.
Taking a cue from the YouTube video where it was mentioned about Paseo Nuevo, we looked at google street view of the place. As it turns out, one of the screenshots of the video have a similar background to the one in the Google street view. The hill in the background and the rocks placed on the footpath seem to match.
When we went further back in google street view, the railings separating the water from land and the streetlight seem to be similar to one of the screenshots of the video posted. Only the street view is in a different direction to the one in the video.
Cyclone Tauktae made landfall in Gujarat between Diu and Una around 9 pm on 17 May 2021 and caused damage to infrastructure and huge number of trees were uprooted according to the news article. Some of the visuals posted by news outlets about the havoc created by Cyclone Tauktae in Gujarat can be seen here, here, and here. Hence, the video posted is not from Gujarat but seems to be from Spain.
To sum it up, video from Spain is passed off as Tauktae Cyclone in Gujarat.


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Video from Syria is being falsely shared as Muslims oppressed in Kashmir - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
October 12, 2019
A video with the logo of ‘BBC News Kashmir’ that shows some Muslim men and women ascending a hill carrying their children and belongings along with them is being shared widely on Facebook. The claim with the video is that Muslims are being oppressed in Kashmir. Let’s analyze the authenticity of that claim.
Video of Muslims being oppressed in Kashmir.
Fact: Video shows the scenes in Syria (near Baghouz), not in Kashmir. Also, ‘BBC News Kashmir’ page is not related to the official ‘BBC News’ channel. So, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
In the Facebook post, both the hashtags of Kashmir and Syria can be seen. While some of the users are interpreting the video to be of Kashmir, others are interpreting it to be of Syria. Also, many users are interpreting that the video was posted by ‘BBC News’.
When the video in the post was run through the ‘InVid’ plugin, several keyframes were obtained. When these keyframes were subjected to Yandex reverse image search, a search result led to a tweet with a similar video. The tweet had the text – ‘Families leaving#Baghouz, the last ISIS stronghold in#Syria.#Searching4Yazidis’. When the same text was copied and searched on YouTube, a video of ‘Ruptly’ with similar visuals but taken from a different angle was found. The video was uploaded on March 14, 2019, and had the following description with it – ‘Footage filmed on Thursday shows what the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) described as Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) militants and their family members leaving their last stronghold near Baghouz, Syria’.
The video shared in the post has the logo ‘BBC News Kashmir’ on it, but there is no such subsidiary of British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) News. The video clip is posted by a Facebook page with the name ‘BBC News Kashmir’ that has no connection with the ‘BBC News’. They seem to be an imposter of ‘BBC News’
To conclude, a video from Syria is falsely shared as Muslims oppressed in Kashmir.
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created: October 12, 2019


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Video from Syria is falsely shared as that of Kashmir - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
September 12, 2019
A video of an old man watching his son, who is lying dead on the floor, is being shared widely on social media. The claim that is going viral with the video is that it shows the pathetic situation of a 90-year old man who is unable to bury his son’s dead body since two days due to the existing conditions in Kashmir. Let’s try to analyze the claim made in the post.
Video of an old man who is unable to bury his son’s dead body for two days due to the existing conditions in Kashmir.
Fact: Video is from Syria and it shows a father looking at his dead son who was killed in the attacks of the Russian Air Force. Hence, the claim is FALSE.
When the video in the post was run through ‘InVid’ plugin, several keyframes of it were obtained. On subjecting these keyframes to reverse image search, many search results were obtained which make it clear that the video is of an old man looking at his son killed during the Russian airstrikes in Syria.
When looked for news reports regarding this incident, a Ukranian news agency “Apostrophe” has published an article with the same video that was posted on Facebook. From the article, it was found that nine civilians were killed and 20 were injured in Syria due to the attacks of the Russian Air Force. And, the video is that of a 90-year-old father saying goodbye to his son, who was killed during those attacks. The news regarding Russian Air Force attacks on Syria can be also seen in the article of Ukranian newspaper “112”.
Owing to the virality of the claim going along with the video, “Prasar Bharati News Services” has put a tweet regarding the video saying that ‘Old video from Syria presented as Kashmir on social media’.
Old video from Syria presented as Kashmir on social media #FakeNewsOnKashmirBusted pic.twitter.com/4CvKbAdNje
To conclude, a video from Syria is falsely shared as that of Kashmir.
Did you watch our new Episode of the DECODE series on Indian Rivers?

created: September 12, 2019


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Video from Telangana is being falsely shared as ‘NRC eviction started in Assam’ - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
January 21, 2020
A post with a video is being widely shared on social media with a claim that police are evicting people out of their homes in Assam after the NRC (National Register of Citizens). Let’s analyze the claim made in the post.
Video of police evicting people out of their homes in Assam after the NRC.
Fact: The video is from Telangana and it shows Hyderabad Police arresting the demonstrators who were protesting against CAA and NRC at Nampally (Hyderabad). Hence the claim is FALSE.
From the ‘DD News’ article, it can be found that the names of over 19 lakh people were excluded from the final NRC list of Assam.
A simple reverse image search of screenshots of the video leads to an article of ‘Siasat’. The article had a collage of photos pertaining to an anti-CAA & anti-NRC protest at Nampally, Hyderabad. In the article, a similar image as shown in the video can be seen sliding along with other photographs of that event. The image had the following description- ‘More than 300 activists and leaders of the left parties were arrested by City Police during protest against CAA and possible NRC’. So, the video is from Telangana and has nothing to do with NRC in Assam.
To conclude, a video of Hyderabad Police arresting the demonstrators protesting against CAA and NRC is being falsely shared as ‘NRC eviction started in Assam’.
Did you watch our new video in the DECODE series?

created: January 21, 2020


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Video from Thallumaala promotional event in Kerala shared as the visuals of the crowd gathered for Laal Singh Chaddha screening at Lulu Mall in Lucknow - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
August 13, 2022
A video is being widely shared on social media claiming it as the visuals of hundreds of people who gathered for the Laal Singh Chaddha screening at the Lulu Mall in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video showing the crowd that gathered for the screening of Laal Singh Chaddha at the Lulu Mall in Lucknow.
Fact: The video shared in the post shows the visuals of the crowd that gathered at the HiLITE mall in Kozhikode for the promotional event of Thallumaala, a Malayalam movie starring Tovino Thomas and Kalyani Priyadarshan. The video is not from Lulu Mall in Lucknow and it has nothing to do with Aamir Khan’s recently released film Laal Singh Chaddha. Hence, the claim made in the post is False.
On reverse image search of the screenshots in the video, a video with similar visuals was found tweeted by a user named AB George on 11 August 2022. AB George tweeted the video describing it as the visuals of the crowd that gathered for the Thallumaala promotional event held at the HiLITE mall in Kozhikode, Kerala.
#Thallumaala promotion event Crowd from #HiLite mall Kozhikode 😳🔥
The event which was scheduled for yesterday cancelled due to the uncontrollable crowd!! #TovinoThomaspic.twitter.com/YdHGD4RS5O
When we searched for further sources, a video with similar visuals was found in an article published by the ‘NDTV’ on 11 August 2022. This article reported it as the crowd gathered at the HiLITE mall in Kozhikode to attend a promotional event of Thallumaala, a Malayalam film starring Tovino Thomas and Kalyani Priyadarshan. Reporting the complete details of this incident, ‘ANI’ published an article on 12 August 2022. Sharing a few pictures of people gathered for the Thallumaala promotional event at the HiLITE mall in Kozhikode, ‘ANI’ said, “The promotional event of an upcoming Malayalam movie titled, “Thallumaala” at HiLITE Mall in Kozhikode was cancelled following a mammoth crowd swamped the venue”.
Reporting the same, several other news websites have also published articles and videos. From all these pieces of evidence, it can be concluded that the video shared in the post shows the crowd gathered for the Thallumaala promotional event held at the HiLITE mall in Kozhikode, not from the Laal Singh Chaddha screening at Lulu Mall in Lucknow.
To sum it up, a video showing the crowd that gathered at the Thallumaala movie promotional event in Kozhikode linked to Aamir Khan’s recently released film Laal Singh Chaddha.


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Video from the ‘Train To Apocolypse’ event in Indonesia is shared as Zombie virus outbreak in China - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
September 5, 2023
A video of passengers encountering zombies at a railway station is being shared on social media claiming that the video depicts the zombie virus outbreak in China. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video depicting Zombie virus outbreak in China.
Fact: The video shared in the post is from the ‘Train To Apocalypse’, a zombie-themed event that took place in Indonesia. The Jakarta Light Rail Transit (LRT) and Pandora Box organised this zombie-themed event in Indonesia as part of promoting public transportation. Hence, the claim made in the post is False.
On reverse image search of the screenshots of the video, we came across many social media posts sharing similar videos affirming that it portrays a zombie-themed event known as ‘Train To Apocalypse’.
When we searched for further sources using relevant keywords, we found similar videos on the Pandora Box Instagram page depicting passengers encountering zombies at railway stations and inside metro trains. On comparing the visuals from the video with that of the video shared in the post, it is confirmed that the video is from the ‘Train To Apocalypse’ event in Indonesia.
The ‘Train To Apocalypse’ is a zombie-themed event organised by the Jakarta Light Rail Transit (LRT) and the Pandora Box company in Jakarta, Indonesia. The actors dressed in zombie attires attack the passengers and security guards at the railway station as part of this paid event. Inspired by the 2016 Korean movie, ‘Train to Busan’, the Jakarta Light Rail Transit (LRT) started this event to promote public transportation in Jakarta. The event was held between 05 August 2022 and 11 September 2022 in Jakarta. A poster published by the Pandora Box, related to the ‘Train To Apocalypse’, can be seen here. A few videos related to the ‘Train To Apocolypse’ event can be seen here, here, and here.
Several news sites reported about the ‘Train To Apocolypse’ event taking place in Indonesia. A few of those news articles can be seen here, here, and here. From all these pieces of evidence, it can be concluded that the video shared in the post does not show real zombies and it has nothing to do with China.
To sum it up, a video from the ‘Train To Apocalypse’ zombie-themed event taking place in Indonesia is shared as visuals depicting the Zombie virus outbreak in China.

created: September 5, 2023


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Video from Uttarakhand is shared as a politician describing failure of PM Ujjwal Yojana scheme in Uttar Pradesh - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
February 3, 2022
A video is being circulated on social media claiming it as the visuals of a politician explaining the failure of the PM Ujjwal Yojana scheme in the state of Uttar Pradesh. This video shows visuals of a family cooking food using wood rather than gas cylinder. The politician in the video accuses the Narendra Modi government of increasing gas cylinder price above 1000 rupees and making it unaffordable. This post claims that the video was shot in Lucknow district in Uttar Pradesh. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of a politician revealing the failure of PM Ujjwal Yojana scheme in Uttar Pradesh.
Fact: The video shared in the post shows former Uttarakhand CM Harish Rawat’s daughter and All India Mahila Congress General Secretary Anupama Rawat explaining that the PM Ujwala Yojana scheme is a failure in Uttarakhand. The video has nothing to do with Uttar Pradesh. Recently, Anupama Rawat filed her nomination as the Congress candidate for the Haridwar Rural Assembly seat. This video was shot during Anupama Rawat’s campaign in a village near Haridwar. Hence, the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
On reverse image search of the screenshots in the video, a video with similar visuals was found on the Facebook page of All India Mahila Congress General Secretary Anupama Rawat. On 30 January 2022, Anupama Rawat shared this video by accusing the Narendra Modi Government of increasing gas cylinder price to 1000 rupees.
Former Uttarakhand CM and Congress leader Harish Rawat’s daughter Anupama Rawat recently filed her nomination for the Haridwar Rural seat in the upcoming  Uttarakhand Assembly elections 2022. News articles reporting this information can be seen here and here.
As part of the election campaign, on 30 January 2022, Anupama Rawat did a door-to-door election campaign in Ranimajra village under the Haridwar Rural constituency. The social media posts and news videos related to Anupama Rawat’s campaign can be seen here, here, and here. The video shared in the post was shot during Anupama Rawat’s election campaign in Haridwar. From all these pieces of evidence, it can be concluded that the video shared in the post is from Uttarakhand, not related to the Uttar Pradesh elections.
To sum it up, a video from Uttarakhand is being shared as visuals of a politician describing the failure of PM Ujjwal Yojana scheme in Uttar Pradesh.

created: February 3, 2022