An old video of Nihang Sikhs’ procession has been revived amid the ongoing farmers’ protest with the false claim that 20,000 Nihang Sikhs are arriving in Delhi to support the farmers.
The video could be traced back to 2018 when it had been shared as Nihang Sikhs marching to Delhi for ‘Fateh Diwas,’ which commemorates the day Sikh leader Baba Baghel Singh conquered the Red Fort, defeating the Mughals in 1783.
CLAIM
Several users shared the video with the caption, “आज पंजाब से 2000 हजार घोड़ो के साथ 20000 निहंग सिंह किसानों के समर्थन में दिल्ली रवाना।”
(Translation: “Today, 20,000 Nihang Singh with 2,000 horses are arriving from Punjab to support farmers in Delhi.”)
A video shared by a user on Twitter had garnered over 36,600 views at the time of writing this article.
Another user had shared the video on Facebook without context on 30 November, stating, “Let the army go to Delhi...” garnering over 55,000 likes and 12,000 shares at the time of writing this article.
WHAT WE FOUND OUT
A reverse image search along with a simple keyword search of ‘Delhi Nihang’ led us to a YouTube video identical to the viral video, uploaded in July 2020, captioned, “Delhi Fateh Divas 2018 Budha Dal Nihang Singh.”
A reverse image search of keyframes from this clearer version also led us to another YouTube video uploaded on 16 November 2018.
A comparison of visuals from the viral video with the old video can be seen below.
The Quint also reached out to Budha Dal Delhi. However, they refused to comment.
Since the video can be traced back to 2018, it is evident that an old video has been revived to falsely suggest that it shows 20,000 Nihang Sikhs marching to Delhi to join the farmers protest.
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