Fact Check: Video of mob attacking BJP leaders is from Darjeeling, not Manipur
The video is from Darjeeling, West Bengal in 2017.
By Md Mahfooz Alam Published on 25 July 2023 12:37 PM GMT
Screengrab from the video tweeted by @southasiadforum
Hyderabad: A video of a mob chasing and attacking a group of men wearing BJP scarves is in circulation, with the claim that the video is from violence-hit Manipur.
A Twitter user shared the video and wrote, “The people of Manipur have recognized BJP & RSS Democracy that soon other countries will also do the same. (sic)”
(Courtesy: Twitter/@southasiadforum)
Fact Check
NewsMeter found that the video is from Darjeeling, West Bengal in 2017.
On performing a reverse image search of the video’s keyframe, we found the same visuals in a video report by a verified YouTube channel, NMF News, published on October 6, 2017.
According to the description, Dilip Ghosh, then Bharatiya Janta Party’s Bengal president, and other leaders were allegedly heckled in Darjeeling by a faction of the Gorkhaland Janmukti Morcha.
We also found the same visuals in a video report by ABP News from October 6, 2017, titled “Attack on BJP President Dilip Ghosh in Darjeeling.”
A report by The Indian Express from October 6, 2017, said a delegation led by Dilip Ghosh who was then state president of West Bengal, was chased and allegedly heckled by supporters of Binay Tamang in Darjeeling. The supporters of Tamag also disrupted a meeting by Ghosh.
Hence, we conclude that the video of a mob heckling BJP leaders in Darjeeling is falsely linked to the events unfolding in Manipur.
