A video playing out on a mobile screen showing drone camera surveillance footage of Ranchi police monitoring rooftops of houses has been circulating rapidly on social media. It is being shared with the claim that ahead of Ram Navami, Ranchi police discovered terraces of 10 houses that were stacked up with stones, implying a conspiracy. Many Right-Wing users have shared the video with a communal taunt.
An X user named Ritik stated that Ranchi police found heaps of stones on 10 terraces a day ahead of Ram Navami. He also wrote that one could guess which religious community these 10 homes belonged to.
Right Wing troll handle Ajeet Bharti also shared the video calling it a conspiracy to carry out attacks on Ram Navami.
Former BJP spokesperson Naveen Kumar Jindal promoted the video with a communal angle, asking which community owned the aforementioned homes.
Right Wing TV panelist and BJP supporter Anand Ranganathan also amplified the footage describing it as ‘shocking’.
Similarly, many media outlets and Right-Wing users shared it with sensational and communal angles. These include Navbharat Times, Times Now Navbharat, Right Wing propaganda website OpIndia, RSS’s magazine Panchjanya, Anand Ranganathan, Amitabh Chaudhary, Anshul Saxena, and Roshan Sinha alias MrSinha.
Fact Check
Alt News reached out to Ranchi SSP Chandan Kumar Sinha regarding this issue. He stated, “There is no communal angle in this matter, and the landlords receiving notices are not from any specific community.”
According to him, this was part of a routine administrative practice, in which the routes of processions or parades were monitored, and attention was paid to ensure that there were no materials related to construction, such as bricks, sand, gravel, etc., on the terraces of buildings on the routes of the processions.
He added that notices had been sent to the owners of approximately 10 houses where materials related to construction were found on the rooftops. They were instructed to remove them by Ram Navami.
The Ranchi police issued a statement on Twitter denying any conspiracy or communal angle in this matter and stating that the discovery was part of a routine administrative process carried out in multiple districts.
जुलूस के मार्गों की ड्रोन से निगरानी एक सामान्य प्रशासनिक प्रक्रिया है। यह अनेक जिलों में किया जाता है और यदि किसी के छत पर कोई निर्माण सामग्री यथा पत्थर,ईट ,बालू आदि पड़ा रहता है तो उसे हटाने के लिए संबंधित मकान मालिकों को @JharkhandPolice @Lathkar_IPS @amolhomkar_IPS @NBTBihar
— Ranchi Police (@ranchipolice) April 16, 2024
Jharkhand chief minister Champai Soren, too, issued a statement through his official X handle, stating “Some of these houses have been built recently, while some are still under construction. Police has also clarified that the owners of these houses belong to different communities.” He made an appeal to everyone to not fall for rumours.
कल से कुछ सोशल मीडिया हैंडल द्वारा रांची की हिंदपीढ़ी में कुछ घरों के ऊपर ईंट, पत्थर आदि होने को लेकर भ्रामक खबरें चलाई जा रही हैं।
रांची पुलिस ने स्पष्ट किया है कि रूटीन चेक के दौरान 10-11 घरों की छतों पर निर्माण सामग्री मिली थी, जिसे हटवा दिया गया है। इनमें से कुछ घर हाल में…
— Champai Soren (@ChampaiSoren) April 17, 2024
To sum it up, a number of Right-Wing users and news outlets falsely shared a video of Ranchi police monitoring through drones, which is a routine practice, with a sensational and communal angle.
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