An image of a policeman dressed in riot gear pelting a stone has been shared on social media in the backdrop of communal riots in Delhi’s Jafrabad-Maujpur region. On February 26, Facebook page Ravish Kumar Ndtv posted the image with the message, “दंगाईयो के साथ दिल्ली पुलिस फूल एक्शन में (Delhi police in full action with rioters -translated)”.
It is noteworthy that the claim is circulating in the view of several videos and reports from the ground that allege the police’s inaction, and sometimes even complicity. Alt News verified that a video of policemen thrashing injured people and forcing them to chant the national anthem was shot in the vicinity of Jafrabad during clashes.
The same image was posted with the identical caption by another Facebook page.
Image from Uttar Pradesh
A Google reverse image search shows that the image is from Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. It was shot on December 19, 2019. “Police throw stones at protesters during demonstrations against India’s new citizenship law in Lucknow on December 19,” reads the caption attached with the image published in an article by Scroll. It has been credited to international news agency AFP.
The photograph was also carried by British media outlet Sky News on December 19, 2019, along with a report on protests against the Citizenship Act across the country.
A two-month-old photograph showing a UP policeman throwing stones during-CAA protests was falsely shared with the claim that it depicts a Delhi cop stone-pelting in the ongoing riots.
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