A video showing police officers thrashing a group of men in a lockup is viral online with the false claim that the men are the accused detained for the recent riots in Mira Road related to the Ram Temple inauguration.
BOOM found that the claims are false, the video is from Uttar Pradesh in June 2022 and is not related to the Mira Road violence.
The consecration ceremony of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya led to at least six instances of violence and vandalism across India, including Maharashtra's Mira Road where 13 people were arrested.
The first part of the video shows a group of men sitting inside a jail cell and the second part shows the men being beaten up by the police with sticks.
It is being shared with the caption, "The people of Mira Road might have understood now, However, like jackals, they create riots in groups. when the canes fall, moye moye happens #MiraRoadRiots 😂😂😂😂"
(Original text in Hindi: मीरा रोड वालों को अब समझ आया होगा शायद , वैसे तो गीदड़ों की तरह झुंड में दंगा कर लेते हैं , जब डंडे पड़ते हैं तो मोये मोये हो जाती है #MiraRoadRiots 😂😂😂😂")
Click here to view the post and here for an archive.
The post is also circulating on Facebook with a similar caption.
Click here to view.
FACT CHECK
BOOM found that the video is from June 2022 when a video of Uttar Pradesh police beating up a group of men went viral on social media.
We ran a reverse image search of some key frames from the viral video on Google and found a report by NDTV published on June 12, 2022. The report was titled 'Viral Video Shows UP Cops Savagely Thrashing Protesters' and carried visuals similar to the viral video.
According to the description, BJP MLA from UP Shalabh Mani Tripathi shared this video showing the men being beaten up by the police after they staged protests against then BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma's remarks on Prophet Muhammad.
We then scanned Shalabh Tripathi's X (then Twitter) profile and found that this video was shared on June 11, 2022, with the caption, "A return gift for rioters."
Click here to view the post and here for an archive.
Below is a comparison between the viral video and the original video shared by Shalabh Tripathi in June 2022.
This video was widely criticised and reported on at the time for its insensitive nature. Former UP CM Akhilesh Yadav wrote,"UP tops in human rights violations and UP is ahead of all in Dalit atrocities," in an X post. Lawyer Prashant Bhushan, too, reacted to the video and called the officials "criminals in uniform."
While Tripathi did not mention the location of the video, reports suggested that the video was from Saharanpur.
We also noticed that the portion in the beginning of the viral video showed some of the men sitting in a jail cell.
A reverse image search of this key frame on Google led us to a report by Jagran published on June 11 regarding the same protests. The report was titled 'Strict action against rioters in Saharanpur, 64 arrested, bulldozer used on the houses of two.'
(Original headline in Hindi: "सहारनपुर में बवालियों पर कड़ी कार्रवाई, 64 को भेजा जेल, दो के घर पर चला बुलडोजर")
The report stated that 64 people had been detained following the protests in Saharanpur along with a picture of the men in the lockup. This picture bore a close resemblance to the viral video. Below is a comparison:
According to reports, over 300 people were arrested in UP alone following the protests. Protestors in Prayagraj and Saharanpur reportedly pelted stones at police personnel as well. Other parts of India including West Bengal, Jharkhand, and New Delhi's Jama Masjid saw similar protests. This, in addition to criticism from Islamic countries including UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Iran, led to Sharma's suspension as party member.
The Supreme Court, too, criticised Sharma for her "loose tongue" and reprimanded her for "igniting emotions across the country." The BJP responded to the incident and said that Sharma's comments did not reflect the stand of the party and were "views of fringe elements."