A video of a store called Shama Biryani Dhaba has gone viral on social media with the claim that the eatery uses unhygienic water from the gutter to cook Biryani. In the video, some men can be seen abusing the man running the Biryani joint and pushing and shoving him, while he pleads with them. In the clip, viewers can also see the gutter from where the store is allegedly using water to cook. A motor and a pipe through which the water is flowing out onto the roads are also visible. However, the clip does not show the eatery actually using the water or storing it for cooking.
Twitter user and Sudarshan news journalist Sagar Kumar, who uses the social media platform to share and amplify communal misinformation on a regular basis, shared the above-mentioned clip with a caption in Hindi that can be translated as: “Warning Abusive Content! Jihadis are not satisfied with “spit”. They put a pipe inside the gutter and the water from it is used to cook the biryani and clean the utensils. When caught, this shameless man tried to bribe these men with Rs 5000″. (Archive)
The mention of ‘spit’ is a reference to a claim made from time to time by the Right Wing ecosystem that Muslims spit in their food. Alt News has previously debunked this claim.
Warning Abusive Content ❗️
जिहादियों का मन “थूक” से भी नहीं भरा तो।
गटर के अंदर ही पाइप डाल दिया और फिर उस पानी से बनाई जाती बिरयानी उसी गटर के पानी से बर्तन धोये जाते थे बिरयानी के।
जब लोगो ने पकड़ा तो बेशर्म आदमी 5 हज़ार रिश्वत देने की बात करने लगा। pic.twitter.com/ZhdJYBvg4o
— Sagar Kumar “Sudarshan News” (@KumaarSaagar) August 17, 2023
Right Wing propaganda outlet Sudarshan News also shared the same clip with the above caption. (Archive)
Warning Abusive Content ❗️
जिहादियों का मन “थूक” से भी नहीं भरा तो।
गटर के अंदर ही पाइप डाल दिया और फिर उस पानी से बनाई जाती बिरयानी उसी गटर के पानी से बर्तन धोये जाते थे बिरयानी के।
जब लोगो ने पकड़ा तो बेशर्म आदमी 5 हज़ार रिश्वत देने की बात करने लगा। pic.twitter.com/evKoAo2ngy
— Sudarshan News Delhi (@SudarshanNewsDL) August 17, 2023
Twitter user BALA (@erbmjha), who often uses the platform to amplify misinformation, shared the above-mentioned clip with the same claim on August 17. The tweet has received over 1.5 Lakh views and has been retweeted over 1,600 times. (Archive)
Shama Biryani sells Biryani made from gutter water in Pinjore, Haryana.
But the moment you call for their economic boycott, they start playing the 1400-year-old victim card. pic.twitter.com/QEPGtPW26z
— BALA (@erbmjha) August 17, 2023
Several other users such as @arunpudur, @igopalgoswami, @angryladki, @IamAjaySehrawat, @TheAbhishek_IND, @eOrganiser, @DrNavhya, @ajaychauhan41, @beingarun28, @SameerSinghVNS also shared the viral clip with similar claims.
Some media outlets such as Asianet News, Vijayavani and News Bharati also published reports about the viral video with similar claims.
Fact Check
The shop, Shama Biriyani Dhaba, is located on the Kalka Pinjore Highway in Pinjore town in Panchkula district of Haryana.
We reached out to the owner, Subhan Ali, to fact-check the claim that gutter water was being used in cooking. He said that a person cleaned the gutter everyday as otherwise, it would overflow. Recently, the cleaner had not turned up for two consecutive days and the viral video was shot on the second day of his absence. On that day, the gutter started overflowing, so the shop owner arranged a motor to pump out the gutter water.
He also shared a video with us showing the actual source of their water for cooking and cleaning utensils. In the video (embedded below), one can see tap-water being collected in a large pot. The owner says that this water is used to clean utensils. The source of this water is a water tank upstairs.
Then, he goes on to show sealed jars of water which, he says, are used for cooking and drinking purposes. He also shows the sewer area and mentions that it is outside the restaurant’s eating and cooking area and that they get the gutter cleaned every two days.
We got in touch with the cleaner, who confirmed to us that he had not turned up for duty on August 14 and 15.
We also reached out to the SHO of Pinjore police station, Karamveer, who clarified that the restaurant had not used gutter water for cooking and cleaning. He said that both the hotel owner and some men who had accused the restaurant of polluting the place by releasing sewer were summoned to the police station. The police told the hotel owner to not pump out sewer water onto the roads and that the cleaner should regularly clean the gutter.
Therefore, the claim that the restaurant Shama Biryani Dhaba in Pinjore, Haryana, was using water from a gutter to cook biryani and to clean the utensils is false.
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