Fact Check: Hyderabad police detain 1,026 Pakistani citizens after Pahalgam terror attack? Here's the Truth
A viral post claims that Telangana police detained 1,026 Pakistani citizens in Hyderabad city. However, the footage actually shows a crackdown by Gujarat police on Bangladeshi and Pakistani nationals.
By M Ramesh Naik
Claim:Hyderabad police detained 1,026 Pakistani citizens, including children, following the Pahalgam terror attack .
Fact:The video shows a crackdown by Gujarat police on undocumented Bangladeshi and Pakistani nationals ā not in Hyderabad.
Hyderabad: In the wake of the Pahalgam terror attack on April 22, 2025, which claimed 26 lives, the Indian government suspended visas for Pakistani nationals and ordered them to leave India by April 27, 2025. According to The Times of India, the Ministry of External Affairs stated:
"All Pakistani nationals currently in India must leave India before the expiry of visas, as now amended.ā
Amid this nationwide directive, a post surfaced on social media alleging a massive crackdown in Hyderabad.
On April 26, 2025, an X user, @JspBVMNaresh, posted a video claiming that Hyderabad police had detained 1,026 Pakistani citizens, including children, after the terror attack. The video showed police escorting a large group of men and women, suggesting a major operation had taken place in Hyderabad. (Archive)
Fact Check
NewsMeter found that the claim is misleading. The video is actually from Gujarat, not Hyderabad.
A reverse image search of a keyframe from the viral clip led us to the same video posted by an Instagram page @ahmedabad_live on April 26, 2025.
The caption read, "Massive Pre-Dawn Crackdown in Gujarat: Over 500 illegal immigrants ā mainly from Bangladesh and Pakistan ā were detained in Ahmedabad during a 3 am combing operation led by DCP Ajit Rajian and teams from the Crime Branch, SOG, EOW, and Zone 6. Similar coordinated drives in Surat, Vadodara, and other cities brought the statewide total to nearly 1,000. In Ahmedabad, detainees were gathered at Kankaria football ground for verification.ā
Additionally, using a keyword search we also found an X post by @PoliticalViewsO, dated April 26, 2025, featuring the same video. It said, "BIG NEWS: A massive crackdown was launched against Bangladeshi and Pakistani intruders in Gujarat. The Gujarat Police has detained more than 1,000 illegal Bangladeshi and Pakistani people living here with fake documents.ā
A video report by The Economic Times, uploaded to YouTube on April 26, 2025, also confirmed the operation:
"In a massive statewide crackdown, over 550 illegal immigrants from Bangladesh were detained in Ahmedabad and Surat for residing in India with forged documents, Gujarat police said on Saturday. Deportation proceedings will follow once verification and interrogation are complete. The operations were conducted by units including the Special Operations Group (SOG), Crime Branch, Anti-Human Trafficking Unit (AHTU), Prevention of Crime Branch (PCB), and local police teams.ā
An image showing visuals similar to the viral video was also featured in a New Indian Express report about Gujarat policeās detention drive, dated April 25.
What Happened in Hyderabad?
According to Siasat, authorities in Hyderabad were directed to deport 208 Pakistani nationals who were already residing in the city, as part of heightened security measures after the Pahalgam attack. Additionally, a Pakistani citizen, Mohammad Fayaz, was detained in Hyderabad for illegally entering India via Nepal to marry a local woman.
The video circulating online does not show Hyderabad police detaining Pakistani nationals. It depicts a crackdown by Gujarat police on undocumented Bangladeshi and Pakistani immigrants. The viral posts are misleading.
