WebQoof Recap: Visuals of 'Pakistani Jets Over Panjshir' & Farmers' Protest

From a quote falsely attributed to APJ Abdul Kalam to old posters of Aaditya Thackeray shared with a communal spin.

From news channels airing unrelated videos claiming to show Pakistan's fighter jets flying over Afghanistan's Panjshir and aiding Taliban to a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson sharing the video of a journalist covering the Kisan Mahapanchayat in Uttar Pradesh's Muzaffarnagar with a claim that she asked her colleague to "teach the protesting farmers", here's what misled the public this week.

1. 'Major Terror Attack' Undefined by Govt, but Rajnath Singh Says None Since 2014

Speaking at the Sardar Patel Statue of Unity in Kevadia on 2 September, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said that apart from Jammu and Kashmir, there have been no 'major terrorist attacks' in India since Prime Minister Narendra Modi assumed office in 2014.

However, The Quint found responses to Lok Sabha questions by former Union Ministers of State for Home Affairs G Kishan Reddy and Hansraj Ahir, where both of them noted at least nine 'major' terror attacks in the country's hinterland since 2014.

Singh, who was the Union Home Minister in 2015, had issued a statement on a terror attack in Gurdaspur, Punjab where three civilians and four security personnel lost their lives.

You can read our fact-check here.

2. News Channels Air Unrelated Visuals as 'Pakistani Jets Over Panjshir'

Various Indian news channels such as Times Now, Republic TV and Times Now Navbharat aired different clips of airborne fighter jets as claims of the Taliban having completely captured the Panjshir Valley in Afghanistan emerged.

As reports of Pakistan aiding Taliban with the Valley's capture came up, news channels broadcasted videos, which they claimed to show Pakistan's jets flying over Panjshir. One of the two videos showed repeated attempts at shooting down a jet, while the other showed a different jet flying past hilly terrain.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by The Quint (@thequint)

We found that the first video, which showed multiple attempts to shoot down a fighter jet was actually gameplay footage of a combat-simulation video game called ARMA-3 and the section of the clip which was aired, starting at the 01:40-mark, can be seen here.

The second video, which shows a fighter jet flying low in hilly terrain, was originally from a place called the Mach Loop in Wales, UK. The Mach Loop is a well-known tourist attraction where people gather to see fighter jets train.

While we were unable to find the exact match, a comparison of the terrain confirms that the video is not from Panjshir.

You can read our fact-checks here and here.

3. No, APJ Abdul Kalam Didn't Say This Against Madrasas or Quran

A newspaper clipping of a quote with text that says madrasas teach the Quran, which teaches religious intolerance went viral on social media. The quote, attributed to Late Former President APJ Abdul Kalam, notes that imposing restrictions on madrasas in India is extremely important to curb terrorism in the country.

However, The Quint's WebQoof team found no reports regarding such a statement in the public domain. We also reached out to APJMJ Sheikh Saleem, late Dr Kalam's grand-nephew, who confirmed that the former president made no such statements and never interfered with religion.

You can read our fact-check here.

4. BJP Spokesperson Shares Video to Claim Scribe 'Tutored' Farmers at Protest

A clip of a journalist speaking to her colleague during the Kisan Mahapanchayat that took place on Sunday, 5 September in Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh had gone viral. BJP Mumbai Spokesperson Suresh Nakhua shared the video, calling the journalist "fake", claiming that she was telling her colleague to "quickly teach the protesting farmers".

We slowed the clip down to carefully analyse the audio, and found that the journalist was asking her colleague to quickly show everything. In the video, she can also be seen gesturing at the cameraperson to pan around and show visuals of the Mahapanchayat.

You can read our fact-check here.

5. Aaditya Thackeray's Hoarding Used to Set False Narrative on Muslim Appeasement

An image of a hoarding showing Maharashtra Minister for Tourism and Environment Aaditya Thackeray with a text written in Urdu language was shared on social media, implying that the Shiv Sena put it up to appease the Muslim community.

A simple reverse image search led us to news reports from 2019, that carried more photos of Thackeray's hoardings, accompanied by text in different languages such as Gujarati, Telugu, among others.

As per the reports, the hoardings, that greeted the people of Mumbai's Worli in different languages had been put up amid Thackeray filing his nomination papers for Maharashtra Assembly election in 2019.

You can read our fact-check here.

(Not convinced of a post or information you came across online and want it verified? Send us the details on WhatsApp at 9643651818, or e-mail it to us at [e-mail] and we'll fact-check it for you. You can also read all our fact-checked stories here.)