Fact Check: Viral video of children doing drugs is from Bihar, not Andhra Pradesh

Hyderabad: A video showing four kids purportedly smoking drugs is in circulation on social media, with a Telugu caption suggesting that the video is from Andhra Pradesh.

The video reportedly has the audio of Nara Lokesh, son of former Andhra Pradesh chief minister and Telugu Desam Party (TDP) chief N Chandrababu Naidu. He could be heard saying, “Kids in the houses are addicted to Ganja. I have seen it with my own eyes. During my visit to a constituency, a mother expressed her fear of her class X daughter getting addicted to Ganja.”

“Hey little children, they are being destroyed... It’s sad to see, (sic)” wrote a premium X user in Telugu who shared the video.

NewsMeter found that the video is from Bihar. The Telugu audio in the video has been digitally added to mislead the people of Andhra Pradesh.

Upon a reverse image search of the video’s keyframe, we found a screengrab from the video used as a cover image in a report by News 18 Hindi published on January 9, 2024. The report said the video was recorded outside the Patna junction in Bihar. It shows four children doing drugs near the parking lot of the railway station. The report mentioned that the video was shared on Instagram and has carried the post.

An Instagram account, Bihari Larka, shared the longer version of the video on January 7, stating in the caption that the video was shot outside the Patna Junction showing children smoking drugs. The Hindu audio in this video said that the video is from the parking beside the Hanuman Mandir outside the Patna Junction. The video also carried the audio of the announcement at the railway station.

The official account of the Fact Check Wing of the Andhra Pradesh government also called out the fake post, clarifying that the video is from Bihar.

“A video of some children from Patna, Bihar is wrongly being circulated as a video from Andhra Pradesh. The original video is from Patna Junction. Be aware of fake news peddlers. Check the video’s authenticity before sharing it in your circles.”

Hence, we conclude that the viral video of children doing drugs is from Patna, Bihar, not Andhra Pradesh.