Mock Drill in Karnataka’s Hubli Shared as Terrorists Help by Cops

A video of cops surrounding a man at a bus stand is being shared with the claim that it shows terrorists in Hubli.

A video of policemen surrounding a man in front of a bus at a bus stand is being shared with the claim that it shows terrorists in Hubli, Karnataka.

However, we found that this is actually a mock drill carried out by police to capture suspected terrorists and does not actually show them capturing actual terrorists.

CLAIM

The video shows a man wearing a mask and a cap being surrounded by cops, many of whom can be seen pointing guns at the man.

A policeman asks the man to remove his backpack and makes him sit on his knees and he is also made to put his arms behind his head. While not much can be heard in the video, the word terrorist can be heard.

The video is tagged with the location Hubli Bus station and is being shared with the claim that terrorists were caught in Hubli.

The Quint also received a query regarding the video on its WhatsApp helpline.

WHAT WE FOUND

On looking at the video we could notice that it looked more like a mock drill. We then ran a keyword Google search and came across some reports which said that it was a mock drill carried out by Hubballi-Dharwad police in order to alert citizens to suspicious elements around them and to demonstrate the response in case of such a situation.

We also spoke to the police to clarify the same and the Hubballi-Dharwad Police Commissioner R Dileep confirmed that it was indeed a mock drill which took place at the Old Bus Stand in Hubli on Saturday, 22 August.

Another report by Hubbali Times also reported on the incident and added that the video shocked the resident of Hubli after it went viral. The article also carried a video of the incident.

News18 Kannada also carried a report about the mock drill, adding that there were two drills carried out, one at an airport and one at the bus stand. The report added that police clarified after misinformation spread on social media about the reality of the videos.

Evidently, it is clear that a video of a mock drill carried out by cops in Hubli to demonstrate preparedness in case of a terrorist attack is being shared with a false claim.

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