A video circulating online claims that two Muslim men were tortured by Hindu police in a religious hate crime in Uttar Pradesh. However, the footage is actually from Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh, where Salim and Aaqib were arrested and paraded for cow slaughter, which is prohibited in the state. Salim has 24 criminal cases, while Aaqib has four. Another accused remains absconding, and efforts are underway to apprehend him. This incident is unrelated to Uttar Pradesh and does not involve religious persecution or unprovoked police action against a particular community.
Sharing the video on X (Formerly Twitter), serial fake news peddler and propagandist account @AsianDigest wrote, “Indian Democracy. Hindu Police Radical Hindu Monk ruled UP, along with extremist Hindus, tortured two fasting Muslim men in custody. Took them in a procession in #Ramadan and forcing them to chant ‘Police is our father, cow is our mother’.
Another propaganda account @KhalsaVision also disseminated the video and wrote. “In UP, India, police and extremist Hindu nationalists paraded two Muslim men and forced them to chant ‘police is our father and the cow is our mother. ‘ This raises questions about the police’s involvement and motivations in such an incident.”
In UP, India, police and extremist Hindu nationalists paraded two Muslim men and forced them to chant "police is our father and the cow is our mother"
— ਐੱਸ ਸੁਰਿੰਦਰ (@KhalsaVision) March 5, 2025
This raises questions about the police's involvement and motivations in such an incident. pic.twitter.com/GRXxojDjSE
Several other users, influencers and propagandists have also disseminated the video and made similar claims. Their posts can be seen here: @JayantBhandari5, @faizulhaque95, @Sheikhalfaris.
The truth about the video shared as Police paraded Muslim men, Fact Check
As soon as we noticed the posts containing the video and claims, we conducted research and analyzed the video. We found that it was from Madhya Pradesh and unrelated to targeted religious persecution.
To verify the claims made by propagandists. We performed a relevant keyword search and found media report and a police statement regarding the incident. According to the reports and the police, the video was from Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh, where two men, Salim and Aaqib, were arrested and paraded publicly over the charges of cow slaughter—a practice strictly prohibited in the state.
#उज्जैन_पुलिस #ujjain #police #MadhyaPradesh_Police pic.twitter.com/mJe9TMJPC0
— SP UJJAIN (@SP_Ujjain) March 3, 2025
Additionally, as per the police officials, Salim has 24 criminal cases registered against him across Ujjain, Dewas, Shajapur, and Indore, while Aaqib has four cases against him. Another accused remains absconding, and efforts are underway to apprehend him. This incident is unrelated to Uttar Pradesh. Also, it does not involve religious persecution or unprovoked police action against a particular community.
Therefore, it is evident from verified sources that the video was not from Uttar Pradesh and was unrelated to targeted religious persecution.
3025
— D-Intent Data (@dintentdata) March 6, 2025
ANALYSIS: Distorted
FACT: A video showing police parading two individuals publicly has been shared with the claim that Hindu police tortured two Muslim men in a religious hate crime in UP, India. However, the video is actually from Ujjain, MP, (1/4) pic.twitter.com/F5pvPb2geT
Intent
Propagandists are circulating videos from Madhya Pradesh with misleading claims to defend illegal activities.
Conclusion
Claim– Muslim men were paraded and tortured in a religious hate crime in Uttar Pradesh.
Fact– The video was from Madhya Pradesh’s Ujjain, where two men were paraded publicly over the charges of cow slaughtering.
Related Article: Fact Check: Video of clash between political workers and Police in West Bengal’s Birbhum falsely shared as Uttar Pradesh – D-Intent Data
