Photo of police arresting Bhojpuri actor Irfan Khan shared with communal twist
Those sharing the photo are suggesting that they were involved in “Barber Jihad.”
By Md Mahfooz Alam Published on 4 March 2023 11:37 AM GMT
(Screengrab source: Twitter)
Hyderabad: A photo of the police arresting two men has gone viral on social media. Those sharing the photo are suggesting that they were involved in “Barber Jihad.”
A Twitter user shared the photo and wrote, “…A Mullah confessed to the police that the mosque receives money to wage barber jihad. Through this, Muslim barbers are taught to make a slight incision with HIV-infected blades on Hindu customers. And more and more boys are being groomed for internecine warfare.” (Translated) (Archive)
(Screengrab source: Twitter)
Fact Check
NewsMeter found that the photo shows the Mumbai police arresting renowned Bhojpuri actor Irfan Khan and his friend Sanjay Yadav on theft charges.
We noticed the logo of INDIA TV on the viral photo. Taking this as a cue, we performed a reverse image search using keywords and found it in a report by INDIA TV titled “Mumbai police arrests Bhojpuri actor Irfan Khan for credit cards theft, fraud.” It was published on 18 July 2013.
As per the article, renowned Bhojpuri actor Irfan Khan and his friend Sanjay Yadav were arrested by the Mumbai police from Bihar’s Chhapra district on charges of stealing credit cards, cheques books, and bill books, and then purchasing valuables.
The report also quoted a police inspector, Vivek Shendye, and said gold ornaments, 30 stolen credit cards, 17 cheques books, and a bill book were seized from them.
(Screengrab source: INDIA TV)
We also found a video report by ABP News published on 18 July 2013. It said Irfan Khan and his aid were arrested by the Mumbai police on charges of stealing credit cards and chequebooks. It also said 30 credit cards, 15 chequebooks, and Rs. 2.5 lakhs cash were recovered from them.
Hence, we conclude that the claim made by social users of “barber jihad” by using HIV-infected blades is false.
