The story uses only screenshot of relevant social media posts and not the actual posts to protect the identity of the minor girl.
A video of a young couple has gone viral on social media with the claim that the man, a Muslim, kidnapped the girl who is a Hindu.
In the video, the man says that the girl came to him of her own accord because she was being mistreated at home. He also states that they got married at a temple and that the girl was 16, not 13. While he does not care about getting caught, the man says that if the harassment continues, they may resort to self-harm. The girl then speaks up, stating that while they are both unhappy in the personal lives, they will be happy together. She emphasizes that she was not kidnapped and the harassment must stop.
Sharing the video, several social media users claimed that the young man in the video was a Muslim who had abducted the minor girl and forced her into marriage. Consequently, the girl’s family had filed a case of kidnapping. The video is said to be from Akhnoor in Jammu and Kashmir. (Archive)
Verified user @aruzara_cx shared the same video with the same claim. The post garnered close to 750,000 views and 3,300 reshares. (Archive)
An X user named @MrTiwaria also shared the video with the same claim and sought action against the man under the POCSO act. His post garnered close to 110,000 views. (Archive)
Several other users amplified the video with the same claim.
Fact Check
Alt News was able to find the original Instagram page where the video was first uploaded. On the same page, we found another video where the couple again talks about the harassment they are facing.
The Instagram page belongs to a man named Rohit.
Alt News contacted the investigating officer in the case, sub-inspector Sanjeet Singh from Jourian police station in Jammu district. He told us that the accused Rohit Gauria, i.e., the man seen in the videos, had been arrested from Bihar on October 22, and Singh and his team were on their way back to Jammu. Singh denied claims of a communal angle. He informed us that Rohit belonged to a Scheduled Caste and the girl, who was a minor, was a Brahmin.
Several local news Instagram pages also corroborated the information provided by Singh.
As it stands, a case of a Hindu man who marrying a minor Hindu girl was reported from Jammu and Kashmir. The man was arrested by J&K police from Bihar. However, social media users falsely claimed that the man was a Muslim.
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