Fact Check: Nepal Hindus take down ‘Muslim flags’, hoist saffron flags? No, video is from Karnataka
A video has been circulating on social media, with the claim that Hindus in Nepal are hoisting saffron flags after removing green coloured ‘Muslim flags’.
By - Md Mahfooz Alam
Claim:Amid the crisis, the video shows Hindus in Nepal hoisting saffron flags after removing green flags associated with the Muslim community.
Fact:The claim is false. The video was filmed in Maddur, Mandya, in Karnataka, on September 8.
Hyderabad: ‘Gen Z-led’ protests in Nepal demanding an end to corruption successfully ousted its Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli’s government, leading to the appointment of a caretaker administration under Sushila Karki. Karki, a former Chief Justice, became the nation’s first woman PM.
Ever since, social media has been flooded with misinformation about the country’s crisis. NewsMeter has debunked several such claims (links here, here and here).
One of the latest claims is about a video showing a man climbing a pole to remove a green flag and hoisting a saffron flag, while crowds holding saffron flags cheer him on.
The video is being shared with the claim that the people in the video are Hindus replacing green flags. An X user shared the video and wrote, “Hindus in Nepal have taken down Muslim flags and have started hoisting saffron flags.” (Translated from Hindi) (Archive)
Fact Check
NewsMeter found that the claim is false, as the video is from Karnataka.
A reverse image search of the video’s keyframes led to identical footage filmed from a different angle, which was shared by the X account Foej Media on September 8. The post stated that the incident occurred in Maddur, Mandya, in Karnataka.
We also found a video with the same visuals posted by the Instagram account of the Kannada media outlet Prajanudi on September 8, with hashtags indicating the video was from Maddur, Karnataka.
Also, an Instagram account, Muslim Mirror, posted the footage with the same visuals on September 9, reporting that hundreds of Hindutva activists marched from Narsingh Swami Temple to a mosque, forcibly removed an Islamic flag, and hoisted a saffron flag in its place in Maddur, Mandya, Karnataka, on September 8.
Using information from these posts, we were able to locate the exact location in Maddur, Mandya, Karnataka, using Google Maps Street View. The same pole with the green flag and the same building visible in the videos can be seen at this location.
Hence, we conclude that the video is not from Nepal. The claim is false.
