Fact Check: Nepal protests – Pro-govt journalist assaulted in public? No, video shows a bank thief
A video has been circulating claiming it shows a pro-government Nepali news anchor being assaulted by protestors amid the ongoing crisis.
By - Md Mahfooz Alam
Claim:The video shows a pro-government Nepali news anchor being assaulted by protestors.
Fact:The claim is false. The video shows a bank thief caught in Nepal.
Hyderabad: A video circulating on social media shows a man handcuffed with his legs tied to a wooden log, sitting on a road surrounded by a crowd. The video is being shared with the claim that it depicts a news anchor who supported Nepal’s ousted government being assaulted by students during the ongoing conflict in the country.
An X user shared the video with the caption, “This is the main ‘anchor’ of a Nepali godi media news channel, who used to spread fake news in favour of the government. See what the students have done to him. Will we also see this fate for the anchors of Godi media channels?” (Translated from Hindi) (Archive)
The user appears to be suggesting that Indian news anchors might face similar treatment.
Fact Check
NewsMeter found that the claim is false, as the video shows a thief caught stealing money from a bank in Nepal amid the ongoing conflict.
In the video, the man surrounded by people is seen seated with money nearby. Upon listening to the conversation in the video, the handcuffed man can be heard saying that he is from Jainagar, India. A Nepali man responds, “Indians are defaming our movement.”
No one addressed him as a journalist.
A reverse image search of the video’s keyframes led us to the same footage shared by several Facebook accounts (links here and here) on September 10, stating it shows a robber being beaten up on the street, who robbed the commercial bank by taking advantage of the ongoing movement in Nepal.
A Nepali media outlet, DNA Khabar, through its Facebook page, shared the same video on September 10, stating that the individuals who robbed a commercial bank by exploiting the ongoing movement were beaten on the streets.
We also found coverage of the robbery incident reported by Nepali media outlet Artha Sarokar on their YouTube channel on September 10. The video report was titled ‘Both the money and gold of the National Commercial Bank were stolen!’ The report featured the man seen in the viral video.
According to the report, thieves allegedly exploited the ongoing movement to loot the Rashtriya Banijya Bank, setting it on fire and stealing both money and gold. The Nepali Army apprehended five individuals, with one handed over to the police, while others remain at large.
NewsMeter could not independently verify whether the tied man in the viral video is an Indian in Nepal. However, we conclude that the viral video does not show any prominent Nepali news anchor being assaulted by protestors. The claim is false.
