2013 Photo Of Pro-Khalistan Banners Linked To Farmers' Protest

A photo from 2013 is being shared to falsely claim that farmers at the ongoing protests are Khalistani separatists. BOOM found that the photo was shot at a gathering at the Golden Temple to mark the 29th anniversary of Operation Bluestar.

In the photo, a Sikh man has been pictured holding a sign which reads: We want 'Khalistan'. Sikh Youth Federation Bhindranwala

The photo is being shared in backdrop of widespread farmer protests in North India against three new farm bills passed by the central government.

Also Read: Farmers' Stir: Photo Of Actress Sonia Mann Shared With A Fake Backstory

The photo has been shared hundreds of times on Facebook and Twitter with Hindi, Tamil, Malayalam and Bengali captions. The captions roughly translate to: They don't want to repeal farm laws. Instead they want Khalistan.

The archive of the post can be accessed here.

The archive of the post can be accessed here.

The archive of the post can be accessed here.

The archive of the post can be accessed here.

Fact Check

BOOM ran a reverse search of the image on TinEye and found the original photo in the Getty Archives.

The caption of the photo states that it was shot on the 29th anniversary of Operation Bluestar at the Golden Temple in Amritsar.

We also found this article by The Tribune which reported that slogans in support of Khalistan were raised after the programme.

Operation Bluestar was conducted by the Indian military in the first week of June 1984 to capture Sikh leader Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale which resulted in more than 500 casualties including Bhindranwale.

Also Read: Doctored Photo Shared With Fake Claim Of A Muslim Disguised As A Sikh

BOOM has fact-checked numerous claims about the ongoing farmers' protests which can be read in this tweet thread.