A video showing a group of people seemingly blocking a road is being shared on social media with the claim that ‘peacefuls’ (a word used sarcastically for Muslims, referring to the oft-made statement that Islam is a 'religion of peace') are behind the act. The video further goes on to add, “wake up Hindus”.
However, we found that the incident took place in Chamba in Himachal Pradesh and both the stakeholders – the ones blocking the road and the ones who were complaining – are from the Muslim community.
CLAIM
The claim along with the video reads: “ये वीडियो उत्तराखण्ड के tehri का है, यहाँ शांतिप्रिय मुल्ला समुदाय गाँव का रास्ता बंद करके गाँव वालों को तलवार से काट ने की धमकी दे रहे हैं. मुस्कुराईये आप हिंदुस्तान मे हैं अरे जागो हिंदुओं जागो (sic)”
(Translated: This video is from Tehri in Uttarakhand. People from the ‘peaceful’ community are blocking the road for the villagers and are threatening them. Smile, you are in Hindustan. Wake up Hindus, Wake up)
Several social media users have shared the video on Facebook and Twitter with the same narrative.
WHAT WE FOUND OUT
We watched the entire video and heard that a man in the viral video urges ‘SP Chamba’ to take necessary action. We also came across a recent video uploaded on YouTube that mentioned that it is from Chamba in Himachal Pradesh.
A local reporter confirmed to The Quint that the video is indeed from Chamba and that both stakeholders, the ones who can be seen blocking the road and the ones who were complaining about it, are all from the Muslim community.
Mentioning the details about the dispute, he said, “There was an old road which was an ancestral one. The people who were blocking the road donated a part of their own land for the construction of a new road. They said that when we are giving you a new road, what is the need of the old road.”
He also mentioned that two-three families involved in the matter were not on good terms and thus they made a video which went viral.
We also got in touch with Subhandeen, a member of one of the families who was complaining about blocking of the road. He, too said, that all the people involved in the incident are Muslims.
“There is no Hindu-Muslim angle to this incident and the matter has been almost resolved now,” he said.
On being asked about the alleged death threats being given to the families, as heard in the viral video, he said, “Voh aise hi gusse mein bana diya video us time, aise hi hota hai.” (Translated: Video was made in anger, it happens.)
Further, speaking to The Quint, assistant sub-inspector of police Pushpendra, who was handling this matter, also confirmed that both the stakeholders are Muslims and that the matter has been resolved now.
Evidently, a massively viral video from Chamba in Himachal Pradesh was circulated with the false claim that it is from Uttarakhand and that there was a communal tone to it.
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