A video of a group of Sikh protesters clashing with the police in Punjab's Tarn Taran district is being shared on social media falsely linking it to the ongoing farmers' protest.
BOOM found that the video predates the farmers' protest and shows clashes near a Gurudwara over the hanging of a portrait of slain Sikh militant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale.
Farmers from more than 300 unions, hailing from Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan, begun marching to Delhi in February 2024 to demand a law guaranteeing Minimum Support Price (MSP). According to reports, the police has deployed the use of water cannons, tear gas, and pellet guns to quell protesters. Amid this, the death of a 21-year-old farmer, Shubhkaran Singh, at the Khanauri border has further ignited outrage among farmers' unions. Singh's family has rejected the Rs 1 crore compensation offered by Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and has instead demanded justice.
In the viral video, a group of Sikh protesters can be seen clashing with the police, and one protester is wielding a sword to attack a policeman.
The video is being shared on X with the caption, "So called farmer attacking police with swords allowed on them for religious purposes Are they farmers??? Ask yourselves!!! #FarmerProtestInDelhi #FarmerProtest"
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The video is also being shared on Facebook with similar captions.
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FACT CHECK
BOOM found that the viral video is unrelated to the ongoing farmers' protest. The incident in the video is from a clash in Tarn Taran district of Punjab, after a Gurudwara's managing committee refused to display a portrait of Khalistani leader Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale.
We scanned the comments under the viral video and found that several users had mentioned that the video pre-dates the farmers' protest and is from Tarn Taran, Punjab.
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Taking a hint from this, we ran a keyword search on Google using 'Tarn Taran clashes police, sikh' and found a report by Hindustan Times published on January 29, 2024 with the headline 'Clash at Tarn Taran gurdwara over removal of Bhindranwale’s poster'.
The report states that the incident took place near the Janam Asthan Baba Deep Singh Gurudwara in the Pahuwing village. The President of the Gurudwara's managing committee, retired Colonel Harsimran Singh, had ordered a group of Sikh youngsters to remove a portrait of Bhindranwale from the Gurudwara's premises. Upon their refusal, Singh took down the portrait himself.
A video of this incident then circulated online, after which leaders of Sikh organisations arrived at the Gurudwara to demand action against the Gurudwara. The police, fearing clashes, began escorting retd Colonel Harsimran Singh to his vehicle when members of the Sikh groups began attacking them with sticks and swords.
News18 Punjab/Haryana/Himachal reported on the incident on January 29, and carried a video that matches the visuals in the viral video.
A part of this report showing a group of men attacking the car with sticks and a man trying to wield a sword against one of the policemen which matches the viral video.
Below is a comparison between the News18 report and the viral video taken from a different angle:
Other local news outlets carried similar videos of the incident that were shared on January 29.
Another report by Punjabi Jagran on the incident, published on January 29, carried visuals similar to the News18 report. According to Punjabi Jagran, the Gurudwara's managing committee had issued an apology to members of the Sikh community who were offended by the video showing the removal of Bhindranwale's portrait.