A video of a mob overturning a car during a Rath Yatra procession near a temple in Karnataka is being shared on social media with the false and communal claim that a Muslim man deliberately parked his car obstructing the procession route to the temple.
BOOM found that the claim is false and spoke to the constable of Mulki police station in Dakshina Kannada district, who stated that there is no communal motive behind the incident and clarified that the mob overturned several other vehicles along the procession route.
While sharing the post, a Facebook user wrote, "In Karnataka, a Muslim man deliberately parked his car in the path of the Temple Ratha and refused to remove it. The Hindus who waited for a long time, finally lifted the car and tossed it aside together. This is symbolic of what we Hindus can do if we unite!" (Archive link)
BOOM found similar posts on X. (Archive link).
We also received received the viral video on our helpline (+917700906588) to verify the authenticity of the claim.
Fact-check
BOOM found that the viral claim is false and there is no communal angle to the incident in the viral video.
We ran a Google search using keywords related to the claim of "Karnataka devotees overturning a car". We found several media reports, including those from Mangalore Today and Public TV from April 4, 2024, that had mentioned the incident involving devotees of the Bappanadu Durgaparameshwari Temple in Mulki, Dakshina Kannada district.
These reports stated that the devotees damaged vehicles obstructing the chariot's path during the procession. Many vehicles were reportedly parked along the chariot route, leaving little space for its passage. Devotees were reported to have pushed aside cars, autorickshaws, and bikes, resulting in damage to the vehicles.
We also searched about this incident on Google with Kannada keywords. The same incident was also reported on TV9 Kannada, which featured a video showing devotees not only overturning the car seen in the viral video but also pushing another motorcycle aside to clear the path for the chariot.
The news report also stated that the incident of damaging vehicles obstructing the chariot's path had gone on social media, with several individuals condemning the actions of the devotees.
Additionally, checking the vehicle information details, we cross-checked with details from the RTO website. BOOM found that the vehicle being overturned belonged to a person named Venkatesh D and was registered in March 2017.
BOOM then contacted Police constable Sunil Padnad from Mulki Police Station, who's responsible for monitoring social media at the station. Constable Padnad stated that the incident in the viral video occurred during the chariot's procession to the Bappanadu Durgaparameshwari temple in Mulki.
He stated that the vehicles obstructing the path belonged to the devotees themselves and emphasised that there was no communal angle to the incident. Constable Padnad also mentioned that no complaints had been received regarding the incident. "We have not received any complaint regarding that incident." Padnad told BOOM.
