A video which shows a man slapping a person inside what appears to be a room is going viral on the internet with users identifying the former as a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader.
What are users claiming?: An X (formerly Twitter) premium user shared the video with a caption that said, "A BJP leader has the audacity to slap a Public Sector Bank Manager. The Arrogant BJP should soon be taught a lesson."
You can view an archive of the post here.
(Source: X/Screenshot)
When this report was being written, the post had garnered over eight lakh views.
(Archives of similar such claims can be found here, here, and here.)
Are these claims true?: No, the video doesn't show a BJP leader. It actually shows a Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana leader named Mayur Borde slapping a bank manager.
How did we find that out?: We performed a Google Lens search on different keyframes of the viral video and came across a news report published in ESakal.
The report, which carried a visual from the viral video, said that a leader of Swabhimani Shetkar Sangathan named Mayur Borde slapped the manager of a bank's branch in Maharashtra's Jafrabad.
It said that many farmers complained against the bank's Warud branch manager Dhirendra Sonkar and claimed that they were being harassed.
Following these complaints, Borde reached the branch with the famers on 13 August to talk to the branch manager.
The report was published on 13 August.
(Source: ESakal/Screenshot)
News reports: Indian Express, in its report, said that Borde slapped a bank branch manager in Jalna distrcit of Maharashtra after alleging harassment of farmers.
The report identified Borde as the youth wing president of Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana.
It added that Sonkar had filed a First Information Report (FIR) against Borde at the Jafrabad police station.
We found visuals from the incident available on the official YouTube channel of ABP Majha on 13 August as well.
What did the FIR say?: Team WebQoof accessed a copy of the FIR which was filed by Sonkar at the Jafrabad police station on 13 August.
In the FIR, Sonkar alleged that around five-six people entered his room in the morning and one of them introduced himself as Mayur Borde, office bearer of Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana.
When the branch manager asked about Borde, the latter questioned about farmers not being paid money.
The FIR mentioned that Borde abused and later slapped the branch manager on his ear.
Conclusion: It is clear that the man in the viral video is being misidentified as a BJP leader.
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