An image of a man in a red jacket has gone viral with the claim that he was killed by Muslims.
An X user shared the image and wrote, “This is Deepak, who was kidnapped by Anwar, Abdul and Rashid and brutally tortured and killed. This incident took place in Faridabad, Haryana.” (Translated from Hindi with graphic description and expletives removed)
SouthCheck found that the claim is false. The man was murdered by his friend, who is a Hindu. The motive for the murder was not communal.
We found an X account that tweeted a similar claim on January 9, 2025. The claim suggested that Deepak had saved a minor girl who was abducted by Muslims. Faridabad Police replied to the claim and denied it. They said that neither Deepak was involved in any such incident nor was there any communal angle to his death.
The tweet read, “Deepak was not an eyewitness in any gang rape case. Please do not spread any misleading news by associating it with a particular community which could harm society. The police team is engaged in investigating Deepak’s murder case.”
Another tweet by Faridabad Police stated that people who were accused of kidnapping the minor were arrested.
The tweet read, “The complaint included allegations of molestation, under which charges were filed under sections of POCSO and SC/ST Act and five accused have been arrested. Deepak’s body has been examined through post-mortem, the report of which is yet to be received. Teams have been formed for action in the murder case.”
Taking a clue, we searched with relevant keywords and found the incident was also reported by Dainik Jagran on January 13, 2025. The report suggested that the murder of Deepak was done by his friend after he found out that Deepak was having an affair with the accused’s wife. However, the brother of the deceased tried to give the incident a communal angle accusing 14 people of his death. The report further stated that the name of the accused was Karan. In his final moments, Deepak was consuming alcohol with Karan when he hit his head with a stone that killed him.
The name of the accused was also confirmed by the Faridabad Police who identified him as Karan and not a Muslim in a tweet. Karan was the deceased’s friend. The tweet had a video of the DGP of Haryana, Shatrujeet Kapur, who also denied any communal angle involved in the murder.
Therefore, we conclude that the viral claim is false.
