A viral video showing a group of people physically assaulting an individual in public has been misrepresented as a religious hate crime against a Muslim man. In reality, the individual, Faisal S/O Idris, had allegedly harassed a girl for 15 days. The situation escalated when Faisal and his friends followed her to a cafe, prompting her family and locals to intervene. They confronted Faisal, assaulted him, and handed him to the police. Based on the girl’s complaint, Faisal was arrested, and authorities are investigating further, including analyzing the video. The incident occurred in Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh.
Sharing the video on X (Formerly Twitter) propaganda account @WasimAkramTyagi wrote, “The video is from Muzaffarnagar. A Hindutva mob is shouting slogans while beating up a young man named Faisal accusing him of ‘love jihad’. Two days ago, a mob with the same mentality was celebrating the release of rapist Asaram from jail. When will the law teach these goons a lesson? When will UAPA be imposed?”. (Translated from Hindi)
Another propaganda account @TheMuslim786 also shared the video and wrote, “Location: Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh. A young man named Faisal was brutally beaten up by Bajrang Dal people and was accused of molesting a girl, love jihad and many other charges and was taken to the police station while raising religious slogans.” (Translated from Hindi)
Several other users, influencers and propagandists have also disseminated the video and made similar claims their posts can be seen here, @MohdWaseemINC, @Mannan263Md, @ZishanSaif5618.
The truth about the video from Muzaffarnagar, Fact Check
As soon as the posts containing the video and claims came to our notice. Subsequently, we conducted research and analysis regarding the incident. We found that the incident occurred in Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh and was unrelated to religious hate crime.
To verify the claims made by the users and propagandists. We performed a relevant keyword search and found the Muzaffarnagar Police statement regarding the incident. According to the Police, the accused, identified as Faisal S/O Idris, had been harassing the girl for the past 15 days. The situation escalated when the girl, accompanied by her family, visited a cafe, and Faisal, along with his friends, followed them and continued the harassment, leading to the confrontation. The police have arrested Faisal based on the girl’s complaint and are taking further action. They also analyze viral video footage. The incident occurred in Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh.
Therefore, it is evident from verified sources that the incident was not related to a religious hate crime. The man was beaten up over molestation and harassment.
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— D-Intent Data (@dintentdata) January 17, 2025
ANALYSIS: Misleading
FACT: A viral video showing a group of people physically assaulting an individual in public has been misrepresented as a religious hate crime against a Muslim man. However, the individual was caught harassing and molesting a girl. (1/4) pic.twitter.com/HOQ3PaJRh1
Intent
Propagandists are circulating videos without providing the actual context to defend criminal activities due to religious purposes.
Conclusion
Claim– A Muslim individual was beaten up in a religious hate crime in Uttar Pradesh’s Muzaffarnagar.
Fact– The man was beaten up when he molested and harassed a girl at a cafe. The man was beaten up by the girl’s family members.
Related Article: Fact Check: Hindu woman street vendor attacked by Muslim individual in Delhi’s Sultanpuri? – D-Intent Data
