A video showing a large crowd gathered around a burning object has gone viral on social media. Many of these people are wearing scarves with the BJP party logo, and we can also see the BJP flag being carried by one.
Users are claiming that the footage shows ‘Hindus burning the Quran in India and destroying a mosque’. The video has been shared widely on social media with captions alleging an act of religious desecration. The caption suggests that Hindus in India are burning the Quran in India and destroying a mosque.
A social media user shared the video with a caption that reads, “The extremist Hindu nationalist BJP government has demolished the 600-year-old Shahi Masjid and set fire to the holy Quran Sharif. O Allah, Subhanahu Ta'ala, grant 40 crore Muslims in Bangladesh, Pakistan, and India the strength of faith to fight against this extremist Hindu nationalist BJP goonda group and destroy them. They are raping Muslim sisters and killing young children. O Muslim brothers, be prepared and seek help from Allah Subhanahu Ta'ala to thwart any conspiracy of the enemy Hindu nationalist forces.”
SouthCheck found that the claim is false. The viral video shows the burning of an effigy of Himachal Pradesh CM Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu over unemployment issues.
On a Google reverse image search, we found that the screenshot of the viral video was shared by ETV Bharat on August 25.
According to the report, the incident is of Mandi, Himachal Pradesh, where Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha workers protested against the Congress government over unemployment, accusing it of failing to deliver promised jobs. They burnt an effigy of Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu. Police tried to douse it with water, but protesters added oil, leading to a brief scuffle. District president Yograj Dogra demanded more jobs and faster recruitment, warning that protests could intensify.
Another website, MBM, also shared the screenshot on August 25.
The report suggests that during the Himachal Pradesh Assembly session, the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha protested against the Sukhu government in Mandi and burnt an effigy of Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu. Police tried to seize the effigy, leading to a scuffle with protesters.
We further found that the longer version of the video was also shared by Dainik Bhaskar one month ago. In the video, we can clearly see that an effigy is being burnt and not any religious text.
Hence, we can ascertain that the viral claim is false.