Two AI-generated visuals are being shared on social media falsely claiming to show protesters who died during the Cockroach Janta Party's (CJP) march to Parliament on July 20.
BOOM found that there have been no casualties during the recent protests. One survived after being revived and given CPR, and the other is recovering and undergoing treatment.
On July 20, the CJP march at Delhi's Jantar Mantar turned violent when the Delhi Police and the Rapid Action Force (RAF) used lathis and tear gas to prevent protestors from reaching the Parliament. According to the police, around 70 protesters were injured, while CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke claimed that the number was greater than 150.
Claim 1: Video Shows CJP Protester Who Died and His Grieving Mother
A 20-second video is being shared with the claim that it shows a student who died after being lathi-charged by the police, along with his grieving mother alleging that the police refused to register an FIR.
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What We Found:
1) Original video shows the protester regaining consciousness
A reverse image search traced it to this post from Instagram Handle @indore_insight in which the same man is given CPR and police officers are later seen helping him sit up.
BOOM also contacted Lakhan Sharma, who runs the Instagram page. According to Sharma, the video was recorded on July 20 near Parliament Street Police Station during the protest. "The police had carried the young man away in an injured condition. However, after he was given CPR, he regained consciousness, and the police then took him away", he said.
2) Video of grieving woman from August 2024
A reverse image search on the keyframes in the video led us to the original video posted by Zee Switch on YouTube on August 14, 2024.
The woman in the video is Sushila Sharma, mother of Major Mohit Sharma, who was killed in action on March 21, 2009, while fighting militants in Kupwara district, Jammu and Kashmir. In the original interview, she talks about the hardships her family faced after her son's death. The video predates the ongoing CJP protest.
The viral clip was altered using AI. We also consulted our partners at the Deepfakes Analysis Unit (DAU), who analysed the video and confirmed the use of AI. They found several inconsistencies like lip sync mismatches. Her face also appears to have an unnatural shine, and when she runs her hand across her cheek, her fingers appear distorted, common signs of AI manipulation.
Claim 2: Sakshi, CJP protester admitted to RML Hospital, is deceased
An obituary image of a young woman adorned with a flower garland is being shared on social media, misidentifying her as Sakshi, an injured protester admitted to RML Hospital, and claiming she has succumbed to injuries inflicted by police brutality.
Archive available here.
What We Found:
We could not find any credible information confirming the death of any female protester. Media reports, citing a bulletin issued by RML Hospital, stated that the condition of Sakshi, a 21-year-old woman who was seriously injured during the protest, has improved significantly.
According to a Newslaundry report, Sakshi was injured around 11:00 a.m. on the 20th near Jantar Mantar and Tolstoy Marg. BOOM also contacted Avdhesh Kumar, the journalist who reported the story, who confirmed that the woman shown in the viral photograph is not Sakshi and that she is currently recovering.
We then ran the image through Hive Moderation and Image Whisperer's AI detection tools, and both flagged the image as AI-generated.
PIB and Delhi Police have also denied the claim, stating that doctors have confirmed her condition is stable and she is out of danger.