A video is being widely shared on social media in which a man is seen attacking a girl riding behind on a two-wheeler.
The video is shared with a caption suggesting that it shows a Hindu youth attacking a Muslim girl who rejected his advances.
A social media user shared the video with a caption that reads, “Sanghis are spreading Islamophobia in the country in the name of Love Jihad to stay in power! Calling for Muslim girls to fall in love and slaughtering the girls who opposed it.” (Translated from Malayalam)
SouthCheck found that the claim is false. The video has no communal angle to it.
On a Google reverse image search, we found that the same video was shared by Manorama Online on June 27, 2023, with a caption that reads, “Love rejected; Attempt to kill 19-year-old girl on the street.”
Using appropriate keywords, we found that the same incident was reported by India Today on June 28, 2023. According to the report, a man in Pune’s Sadashiv Peth attacked a female friend with a sickle after she rejected his proposal. Fellow students and a bystander named Leshpal intervened, thwarting the attack. The accused was arrested.
We found that India Today also shared the video on its website on June 28, 2023.
The incident was also reported by NDTV on June 27, 2023. According to the report, the man was identified as Shantanu Laxman Jadhav, while the name of the victim was 20-year-old Priti Ramchandra.
Hence, we can ascertain that the viral claim is false.
