Fact Check: Video of woman's assault by Muslim in-laws over infertility is scripted
The video is a work of fiction. It was made by a content creator, Ankur Jatuskaran.
By Md Mahfooz Alam Published on 24 Aug 2023 10:34 AM GMT
Screengrab from the Facebook post.
Hyderabad: A video of a woman tied up in metal chains, lying flat and almost submerged in a dirty lake is viral on social media. The video shows two men rescuing the woman while another woman, who calls herself the mother-in-law of the chained woman, forcing her into the lake. Users claim that the video shows a Muslim family mistreating their daughter-in-law after seeking advice from a saint (pir) about infertility issues.
A Facebook user shared the video with the caption, “This is the science of Islam. A Pir Baba of exorcism said that if you keep the woman in water for 12 days, a child will be born. The Muslim woman was kept immersed in water for a total of six days by her mother-in-law and husband by forcibly tying her hands and legs. (Translated from Hindi)”
(Image Credit: Facebook)
Fact Check
NewsMeter found that the video is a work of fiction. It was made by a content creator, Ankur Jatuskaran.
We noticed a suggestion under the Facebook posts of the video, that said “Watch more original videos by: Ankur Jatuskaran.” It had a link to a Facebook account of a user by the same name.
(Image Credit: Facebook)
We skimmed through Jatuskaran’s Facebook account and found the extended version of the video posted on December 16, 2022.
About 30 seconds into this video, a disclaimer text pops up on the screen for a second which states that ‘the content made in this video should be considered for entertainment purpose only.’
(Image Credit: Facebook)
In the About section of his Facebook account, Jatuskaran described himself as a ‘video creator’.
(Image Credit: Facebook)
We also found the viral video published on Jatuskaran’s YouTube channel on March 31, 2023. We checked other videos by the content creator on his Facebook account and YouTube and found that many of his videos involve the same people performing scripted fights.
Hence, we conclude that the viral video is scripted and does not show a real incident.
