Old video of temple being vandalized in Pakistan resurfaces again

Hyderabad: A video of a large crowd reportedly trying to demolish a structure with hammers is being widely circulated on social media. People are claiming that the video shows a 100-year-old Lord Shiva temple being demolished in Pakistan.

Amardip Potfode, the state secretary of BJP SC Morcha, Maharashtra shared the video on Twitter and claimed that a 100-year-old Shiva temple was demolished in Pakistan.

Similar posts can be seen here and here.

Fact Check

NewsMeter found that the viral claim is misleading and the video is old.

On performing a simple reverse image search of the keyframes on Invid tool, we found a report by The Times of India from December 2020. The report titled “Angry mob destroys Hindu temple in northwestern Pakistan” carried the same video.

It said, “An angry mob led by local clerics burn down a Hindu temple in Karak district of Pakistan’s North-western Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.”

We also found a report by Orissa Post titled “Pakistan’s KPK govt allots Rs. 3.48 for reconstruction of Hindu temple damaged by mob.” It said, “Pakistan’s Khyber Pakthunkhwa Provincial Government has released over Rs 3.48 crore for the reconstruction of a revered Hindu shrine damaged by a mob led by some local clerics and members of radical Islamist party Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam in December last year.”

Further, we found that the viral video was tweeted by Ihtesham Afghan, a founder member of Pashtun Tahfooz Movement, back in 2020, strongly containing and criticising the act. The tweet read, “A hindu temple was demolished by religious extremists in karak today. It is very shameful moment for us because it reflects the way of how we treat minorities in our country. You can’t run a federation unless and until the rights of minorities are protected. Strongly condemnable.”

Th viral video was uploaded on YouTube two years ago. The description reads, “‘A century-old sacred Hindu shrine in Pakistan was destroyed by a Muslim mob in December – the second ransacking and desecration of the holy site. Pakistan’s Supreme Court has issued an order to officials in the north-western district of Karak to pave the way for rebuilding the Sri Param Hansji Maharaj Samadhi temple, but the attack has left the country’s Hindus feeling vulnerable and the government facing accusations that it is failing to protect the country’s religious minorities.”

It is evident that the video showing a mob vandalising a temple in Pakistan is from two years ago. It has resurfaced again.

Hence, the claim that it is recent is misleading.