Fact Check: Video claiming to show Rohingya Muslims caught posing as sadhus in Meerut is false
Video showing three people dressed as Sadhus being questioned about their whereabouts has gone viral.
By Sibahathulla Sakib
Claim:The video shows three Rohingya Muslims disguised as sadhus caught in Meerut.
Fact:This claim is false. Meerut police identified them as Hindu sadhus from the Nath community.
Hyderabad: A video has gone viral on social media with the claim that it shows three Rohingya Muslims being caught disguised as sadhus in Meerut.
An X user posted the video with the caption: “The public caught 3 Rohingyas roaming around as sadhus in Meerut. Their names are Md. Shamim, Altam, and Zubair. They used to reconnoiter Hindu localities wearing saffron clothes. The public also accused the three of stealing children. (sic)” (Archive)
In the 23-second video, the videographer can be heard questioning the three individuals in Hindi regarding their whereabouts.
The same video can be seen here. (Archive)
— MEERUT POLICE (@meerutpolice) July 13, 2024 ">Fact Check
NewsMeter found that the claim is false.
The video had the ‘Sudarshan Uttar Pradesh’ logo on it. Using this clue, we searched online and found the video posted on the X account of the news channel Sudarshan Uttar Pradesh. The post also tagged Meerut police and the UP police.
However, Meerut police’s official page responded to the claim in the comments, stating that the individuals are sadhus/fakirs from the Nath community. The post from the police read: “The claim that the three were taking people hostage and beating is false. Police reached the spot and brought the three sadhus to the police station. Upon inquiry, it was found that all three are residents of Yamunanagar (Haryana) and are sadhus/fakirs from the Nath community who engage in begging. (translated from Hindi)”
A reverse image search of a screenshot of the video led to a report by Dainik Bhaskar titled: ‘Sadhus of Nath community caught as suspects in Meerut: Threatened with a stick, people took him to the police, accused of child theft’ (translated from Hindi). The report contained a collage of the images related to the incident which also had a screenshot of the video.
According to the report, the three sadhus—Sunil, Gaurav, and Gopi—are residents of Jagadhari, Yamunanagar in Haryana. The report mentioned that their identities have been verified by the village head and local police. The sadhus travel around to earn their livelihood and have no criminal records.
A similar report was published by Nav Bharath Times about the three sadhus being falsely branded as criminals.
Hence, the claim that three Rohingya Muslims disguised as sadhus were caught in Meerut is false. The individuals are Hindu sadhus from Haryana.
