CLAIM
A viral post circulating on social media claims that a gang of Irani members – alleged to be robbers – might intrude into houses or apartment areas in the guise of bedsheet sellers. Referring to the alleged miscreants as the ‘Gulbarga & Bidar Irani Gang,’ the post shows a number of faces and claims to have been received from Kanjurmarg police station in Mumbai.
Several social media users have shared the post on Facebook and Twitter with a similar claim.
The Quint received a query about the claims made in the poster via its WhatsApp helpline.
ISSUED BY MANGALORE, NOT MUMBAI
Since the claim mentioned that the poster was received from the Kanjurmarg police station in Mumbai, The Quint reached out to them for confirmation. An official in the Kanjurmarg police station said that the police station had not published or released any such poster.
We searched on Google using keywords ‘Irani gang members,’ and found an article published by Daijiworld on 29 July. Titled as ‘Mangaluru: Police alert public of infamous ‘Irani gang’ of looters,’ the article carried the same poster and claimed that it was from Bajpe police station in Mangaluru. The gang was reportedly ‘active’ in Chikkamagaluru and several other areas of the district.
An official in the Bajpe police station confirmed to The Quint that the poster was released from the police station and the faces on it were those of suspected robbers.
Another senior official in the Mangaluru City Police told The Quint that members of Irani gangs come on two wheelers and indulge in crimes such as chain snatching, among others. “These gangs have their tie-ups in Bengaluru, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu,” he added.
(Not convinced of a post or information you came across online and want it verified? Send us the details on WhatsApp at 9910181818, or e-mail it to us at webqoof@thequint.com and we'll fact-check it for you. You can also read all our fact-checked stories here.)
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)