Fact Check: Sonam Wangchuk instigated Nepal-Bangladesh-like violence in Ladakh? No, clipped video misses context
A video has been circulating online, claiming it shows Sonam Wangchuk urging violent protests similar to those in Nepal, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka in Ladakh.
By - Md Mahfooz Alam
Claim:The video shows Sonam Wangchuk urging violent protests similar to those in Nepal, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka in Ladakh.
Fact:The claim is false. The video is clipped and does not show the full context. In the unclipped version, Wangchuk is seen advocating for peaceful protest.
A video clip of climate activist Sonam Wangchuk, who has been charged under the National Security Act (NSA) and is currently lodged in Jodhpur jail, is circulating on social media. Wangchuk was detained for allegedly instigating a mob that led to violent clashes and the deaths of four protesters in Ladakh on September 24.
The clip shows Wangchuk speaking in Ladakhi, purportedly, urging violent protests similar to those in Nepal, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka in Ladakh.
An X handle, Bala, infamous for spreading misinformation, shared the video with the caption, “Masses will bring change in Ladakh like Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka". Anarchist Sonam Wangchuk was inciting mob on 10th Sept & today put Leh on fire with the help of Congress. #Laddakh" (Archive)
BJP’s IT cell head, Amit Malviya, shared the video and wrote, “Anarchist Sonam Wangchuk first incited mobs on 10th Sept, and with Congress’s help, he set Leh on fire on 24th Sept. His actions have been anything but peaceful. What he preaches on national TV and what he practices are poles apart.” (Archive)
Fact Check
NewsMeter found the claim to be false, as the viral clip is clipped and does not show the full context. In the uncropped version, Wangchuk is seen advocating for peaceful protest.
We conducted a relevant keyword search and found a 34-minute video of Wangchuk published on the YouTube channel “Ladakh People's Voice” on September 10, titled “35-day Anshan announced; land cancellation, FIR would not scare me, ‘Ready to die’: Sonam Wangchuk.”
The viral clip appears in this video from the 15:00-minute mark to the 15:14-minute mark. In the clip, Wangchuk can be heard saying, “As many said earlier, a decisive change has come, may it be in Nepal, Bangladesh, or Sri Lanka. It is the people who bring the changes. If someone dies (referring to his own death on hunger strike), then the change will come.”
After the 15:14-minute mark, referring to recent movements in Nepal, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka, he can be heard saying, “I believe that, unlike them with all that violence, turmoil, and stone pelting, Ladakh will bring a peaceful change, a peaceful revolution in which we ourselves die of starvation (hunger strike) so that the change becomes inevitable. That would be our difference from those other countries. For all the countries, Ladakh will become an example that you do not have to resort to arson or die from bullets. We will lay our lives down out of starvation, inflict pain on ourselves, but not on others. Those times are upon us now.”
The above excerpt clearly demonstrates that Wangchuk was not instigating violence. On the contrary, he was advocating for a peaceful movement in Ladakh, one that would set an example for others and stand in stark contrast to the violent protests in Nepal, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka.
On September 10, The Hindu and Deccan Herald reported that Wangchuk had begun a 35-day hunger strike to demand statehood and special status under the Sixth Schedule for Ladakh, which has been a Union Territory for six years.
Notably, neither media outlet reported at that time that Wangchuk was instigating violence or urging violent protests akin to those in Nepal, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka.
Therefore, we conclude that the viral clip is cropped and does not show the full context. The claim that Wangchuk is instigating violence in the viral clip is false.
