J&K BJP MLAs Suspended For Chanting 'Bharat Mata Ki Jai?' No, Claim is False!

The MLAs were suspended from the assembly for creating ruckus in the house and storming the well.

Fact-Check: They were suspended for heckling and jumping into the well of the house. 

(Source: The Quint) 

A video showing politicians wearing a tricolour scarf indulging in sloganeering is being shared on social media platforms. They can be heard raising "Bharat Mata ki Jai" slogans.

The viral posts stated that the Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) belonging to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) were suspended from the proceedings for chanting "Bharat Mata ki Jai!" to protest against the resolution to re-instate Article 370, which granted a special status to J&K.

An archive of the post can be found here.

(Source: Facebook/Screenshot) 

(Archives of similar claims can be found here and here.)

Is the claim true?: No, the claim is misleading.

• While the video is from the J&K assembly where BJP MLAs chanted the said slogan, they were not suspended for this reason.

• The opposition MLAs were suspended for forcibly entering the well of the assembly and disrupting the proceedings of the assembly. At the time disruption, a resolution was introduced by the ruling National Conference (NC) to reinstate Article 370 was being discussed.

What we found: At first, we reviewed the live broadcast of the assembly that was streamed on 8 November revealing that the BJP MLAs were protesting and shouting different slogans in the House's well. This was available on Money Control's official YouTube channel.

• Around 32 minutes of the stream, apart from the "Bharat Mata ki Jai!," other slogans can also be heard such as "Samvidhan ki raksha kaun karega, hum karenge, hum karenge."

• While, we were unable to transcribe the exact wordings of the other slogans, it included words such as "Nahi chalega, Nahi chalega."

• Around this time, opposition MLAs can be seen standing on the tables and chanting the slogans. This can be seen at 32:51 minutes.

You can see the preview here. 

(Source: YouTube) 

• Around 33:36 minutes, we can see the BJP MLA in the viral video who was chanting the "Bharat Mata ki Jai!" The person in the screenshot is Satish Sharma, BJP MLA from Kathua.

You can see the preview here. 

(Source: YouTube) 

• Amid all the sloganeering, another MLA was the floor of the assembly, delivering his speech over the restoration of Article 370, a resolution introduced by the ruling NC.

• Around 37:36 minutes, viewers can see the BJP legislators jumping into the well of the house. Only at this point, can Speaker Abdul Rahim Rather be heard saying, "Remove them away."

You can see the preview here. 

You can see the preview here. 

News reports: According to a post by news agency Asian News International (ANI) from 8 November, it stated that the BJP MLAs were suspended from entering the well. It features the same shot of the MLA jumping into the well.

• The Hindustan Times reported on 8 November that following the instructions of the speaker, at least 12 BJP MLAs were escorted out of the House after they rushed into the House's well.

• Following the suspension, 11 other BJP legislators walked out of the assembly in protest.

Here is the preview of the report. 

(Source: HT)

• None of the reports noted that the BJP MLAs were suspended for chanting, "Bharat Mata ki Jai!"

Additionally, the BJP's official J&K X handle posted a clip showing few MLAs tackling another legislator for unfurling a poster in support of Article 370.

• They noted, "BJP MLAs took hold of PDP MLA Mir Mohammad Fayaz after he unfurled a banner on Article 370 in the Jammu & Kashmir Assembly." (sic.)

• The same is visible in the live feed at 1:04:52 hours. At this time as well, the Speaker Rather asked for the removal of the heckling legislators.

• The HT report also noted the same incident.

Here are the contents of the report.

(Source: HT) 

Following them being "marshalled out" of the assembly, the BJP MLAs held a "parallel assembly," in protest against the proceedings of the house, noted the Kashmir Observer.

Here is the preview of the report.

(Source: Kashmir Observer) 

The viral video has cropped out the part of the other slogans chanted and the MLAs jumping into the well to make the misleading claim.

Conlusion: Social media users have falsely claimed that BJP MLAs were suspended from the J&K assembly for chanting "Bharat Mata ki Jai!"

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