{"id":298891,"date":"2025-05-14T15:50:06","date_gmt":"2025-05-14T10:20:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/?p=298891"},"modified":"2025-05-14T15:50:06","modified_gmt":"2025-05-14T10:20:06","slug":"17-year-old-image-of-mass-cremation-shared-as-last-rites-of-iaf-pilot-killed-in-pakistan-airstrike","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.altnews.in\/english-clone-2026\/17-year-old-image-of-mass-cremation-shared-as-last-rites-of-iaf-pilot-killed-in-pakistan-airstrike\/","title":{"rendered":"17-year old image of mass cremation shared as last rites of IAF pilot killed in Pakistan airstrike"},"content":{"rendered":"

An image of a burning pyre is viral on social media, with many Pakistan-based accounts claiming that it shows the last rites of Rohit Kataria, a Rafale pilot killed on May 7 in retaliatory strikes by the Pakistan armed forces after India launched Operation Sindoor.<\/p>\n

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The image has gone viral amid the ongoing conflict between India and Pakistan. Scores of unverified visuals such as this one have been doing the rounds and are being linked to the geo-political tensions between the two countries. The latest crisis was triggered by a terrorist attack that killed 26 civilians in Pahalgam, Kashmir, on April 22.<\/p>\n

X user @DI313_ shared the photo with a caption that the death ceremony of Squadron Leader Rohit Kataria was being held on May 12. “He leaves behind his wife Shalini Chaudhary and 2-year-old son Chandan,” the caption added. The user had shared a 5-digit number, 32292, alongside Kataria’s name. This seems like a badge or service number. At the time of writing this, the post had over 150,000 views. (Archive<\/a>)<\/p>\n

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Several other X users, including verified accounts @IntelPk_<\/a> and @War_Analysts<\/a>, shared the image with similar claims. (Archived versions\u00a0here<\/a>, here<\/a> and here<\/a>.) The claims and image were also viral on Facebook<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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