A video of policemen allegedly firing gunshots at a crowd of people is being shared on social media. The accompanying claim suggests that cops shot students protesting against privatization. “निजीकरण के विरोध में प्रदर्शन कर रहे छात्रों पर सरकार ने गोलियां चलवाई।पूरा तानासाही आ गया है भारत मे।”, tweeted one Shamshad Khan. This video is being circulated in the backdrop of the recent students protest held in Bihar against the government mulling over privatising the Indian Railways. However, Piyush Goyal has reportedly ruled out privatisation but said that he believes in large investments. Addressing the media, the railway minister said, “It will continue to be government’s entity”.

Several Facebook users shared the video with the same message.

The video is also being shared on WhatsApp with an identical narrative.

2017 MOCK DRILL VIDEO FROM JHARKHAND

The video actually depicts a 2017 mock drill video from Khunti, Jharkhand.

Alt News has debunked the video thrice in the past when it was shared with different claims suggesting that the police fired shots at Kashmiris and cops shooting down farmers in Mandsaur. The video was also viral as the government diluted Article 370.

In a conversation with Alt News, the owner of Jagdamba Steel, a shop seen in the video, confirmed that a mock drill was carried out by the police on October 31, 2017. It may be reiterated that an announcement in the background was enough to raise suspicions against the claims floated with the video. You can read our detailed fact-check here.

A two-year-old video of a mock drill carried out by Jharkhand police is being falsely shared as cops shooting down students protesting against privatization.

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About the Author

Jignesh is a writer and researcher at Alt News. He has a knack for visual investigation with a major interest in fact-checking videos and images. He has completed his Masters in Journalism from Gujarat University.