Fact Check: ASHA workers arrested in ‘Chalo Vijayawada’ protest? No, video is from 2024

Hyderabad: A ‘Chalo Vijayawada’ program was organised on March 6 by Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHA workers) to achieve their longstanding demands. The demands include a salary hike and the release of GOs addressing retirement age, among others.

In this context, a video is being shared on social media claiming that the State police, under the current TDP coalition government, arrested ASHA workers who came to Vijayawada to take part in the protest.

In the video, we can see police personnel detaining women who are protesting on what seems to be a highway.

The video was shared on X (formerly Twitter) on March 6 with the caption: “Arrest of ASHA workers… > AP - Police are arresting ASHA workers who are flocking to Vijayawada…> 100 people were detained in Vaddeswaram, while the police stopped ASHA workers who tried to hold a rally at the Kazha toll gate... #CBNFailedCM" (Translated from Telugu) (Archive)

Another post making a similar claim can be found here. (Archive)

Fact Check

NewsMeter found that that claim is false. It is an old video showing arrests made on February 8, 2024.

We used a keyword search to find out if ASHA workers at the ‘Chalo Vijayawada’ protest were arrested. We found a March 6 report published by NTV titled “Asha Workers Protest: ‘Chalo Vijayawada’.. Police arrest ASHA workers!”

The report stated, “The police are stopping ASHA workers from going to Chalo Vijayawada. This has led to tense situations at the railway station and bus stands in the city. The police are registering the names of ASHA workers who have come to the railway station and bus stands to go to Chalo Vijayawada and sending them back home.” There were no mentions of forcible arrests.

Another article published by Prajashakti on March 6 did not contain any information about any arrests of ASHA workers. However, it did state that the police are monitoring the movements of ASHA workers through drones and intelligence teams.

We could not find any credible news articles using the viral video to report any arrests of ASHA workers on March 6. Using reverse image search of the video’s keyframes, we found an extended version of the viral video. Telugu States News uploaded the video on their Facebook account on February 8, 2024.

The video was shared with the caption “ASHA workers block Guntur and Vijayawada highway. ASHA workers protesting by blocking the highway.” (Translated from Telugu) The viral video can be seen from the 0:24-minute mark in this video.

We found another video showing the incident from a different angle. This video was also uploaded on the same day with the title ‘ASHA workers blocking the Guntur-Vijayawada highway. ASHA workers protesting on the highway.’

A comparison between the viral video and the video uploaded on the Telugu States News Facebook page can be seen here.

News bulletins by TV5 News and RTV stated that police arrested ASHA workers who were protesting on the Guntur highway as part of the ‘Chalo Vijayawada’ program on February 8, 2024.

Andhra Pradesh government’s Fact Check Department took to X to respond to the viral posts. “Some people are spreading false propaganda saying that the police have arrested ASHA workers in the State. The video circulating on social media is from February 8, 2024. The video was taken a year ago and is being attributed to the current government. It is fake propaganda.”

The video is being shared by some pro-YSR Congress Party social media accounts, blaming the current government for the arrests. However, the TDP coalition government came to power on June 4, 2024. The arrest of ASHA workers seen in the video took place on February 8, 2024, while the YSRCP was in power.

Therefore, NewsMeter concludes that the viral claim is false.