Fact Check: Erragadda Mental Hospital’s patients put on display? No, video is from Durga Puja pandal in WB
A video showing a hospital ward with mentally ill persons behind bars has gone viral with the claims that it is from the Erragadda Mental Hospital in Hyderabad.
By K Sherly Sharon Published on 9 Dec 2024 8:02 PM IST
Claim: The video shows mentally ill patients put on display at Erragadda Mental Hospital in Hyderabad.
Fact: The claim is false. The video was filmed at a ‘lunatic asylum’ themed Durga Puja pandal in West Bengal.
Disclaimer: The fact-check addresses misinformation involving mental health institutions. We recognise that mental health is a sensitive issue and aim to provide clarity without reinforcing stereotypes or stigmatising mental health conditions. If you or someone you know needs support, please seek help from mental health professionals.
Hyderabad: A video allegedly showing mentally ill persons in torn clothes and shabby wigs and behind bars in what seems to be a hospital ward is going viral. The video is being shared with the claim that it is from the government’s Institute of Mental Health in Erragadda, Hyderabad.
In the video, the alleged hospital ward with beds is enclosed in a fence with people in hospital gowns. On the other side, people in shabby clothes and wigs can be seen locked behind bars. Amused onlookers can be seen walking between both enclosures, filming people and their antics.
The video was shared on Facebook with the caption, “Its Erragadda Mental Hospital…” (Archive)
Fact Check
NewsMeter found that the claim is false. The entire set-up in the video was part of a Durga Puja pandal in West Bengal.
Through a reverse image search of the video’s keyframes, we found a similar video on YouTube. The video was uploaded on October 12, 2024, and was titled ‘Mental asylum theme based puja pandal || Santan Sangha || Coochbehar’
A comparison of the viral video and the YouTube video showed they are the same.
Following the lead from the video’s title, we found an article by Telegraph India. The report posted on October 14 was titled, “‘Behala Fight Club’ to curious monkey to ‘lunatic asylum’ theme, the funny, bizarre moments of Durga Puja 2024.”
In the report, we found screenshots from the viral video labelled “The ‘Pagla Garod’ theme”. The report stated,” A pandal in Coochbehar, with the theme of ‘Paglagarod’ (Bengali slang for mental asylum), sparked outrage on social media for its insensitive portrayal of mental illness. The pandal featured people dressed as mentally ill patients.”
The Telegraph report confirmed that the viral video is from a ‘lunatic asylum’ themed Durga Puja pandal in West Bengal’s Cooch Behar. Therefore, NewsMeter concluded that the video does not show the conditions of patients at Erragadda Institute of Mental Health in Hyderabad. The claim is false.
