March 20 Video Peddled As Muslims Violating Lockdown To Offer Namaz

A video from March 20, 2020, showing Muslims praying on the street near a dargah in Delhi, is being shared with a false claim that they are violating the ongoing lockdown which prohibits large gatherings.

The video -in which the person recording also slams Delhi Police - was shot at Patparganj (East Delhi) and shows Muslims gathered to pray outside a dargah, with a few police personnel standing guard nearby.

BOOM found that viral video is a cropped version of a longer video shot on March 20, 2020 where the person recording states the date.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a nationwide lockdown on March 25, 2020 which is currently in its third phase, and is expected to end on May 17. In a recent address, the prime minister said there will be a fourth phase for the lockdown with restrictions and details, to be announced soon.

The video is being shared with a caption in Hindi that translates to, "This is the situation. Law is being violated in broad daylight at the mosque on Patpadrganj road in Delhi while Arvind Kejriwal is asking people for their suggestions on managing things. Kejriwal should be ashamed

Original text in Hindi : (यह हालात दिल्ली के पटपड़गंज के रोड पर जो मस्जिद बनी हुई है उस पर सरेआम कानून की धज्जियां उड़ाई जा रही है और अरविंद केजरीवाल बोल रहे हैं कि आप हमें सुझाव दो हमें क्या करना चाहिए शर्म आनी चाहिए केजरीवाल को)

In the 1:04 seconds video, the person recording points at a dargah and shows several Muslims kneeling in prayer on a street, adjoining a dargah. The camera then pans to shows a stretch of road, with Muslims praying on side and vehicles freely moving on the other. The person recording it asks why are gathering for Namaz allowed at a time when everybody is "scared of Coronavirus" and goes on to criticise Delhi police for allowing Muslims to gather for prayer.

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FACT CHECK

BOOM ran a search for the words 'Patparganj Namaz' in Hindi text on Twitter and found the same video tweeted by Abhishek Dubey, head of social media, the Delhi wing of the Bharatiya Janata Party.

The video was tweeted by Dubey on March 20, 2020 and is a longer version of the viral video. At 14 seconds, the person recording it says, "yeh aaj ka video hai 20 taarik ka". This part has been clipped from the viral video in a bid to show that it is recent.

A search for lockdown announced in Delhi showed us news reports that said Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal announced a total lockdown in Delhi on March 23 and two days later on March 25, the prime minister announced a complete lockdown in the country. The viral video was shot on March 20, 2020 before either the Delhi lockdown or the nationwide lockdown.

BOOM also reached out to Delhi police who directed us to a tweet where the official Twitter account of DCP East Delhi replied to a person stating the video is old.

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BOOM also found a news report by a local Delhi based news channel - P24News, which debunked the video by visiting the same road where the dargah is located and the viral video was recorded.

The channel's reporter shows visuals of the dargah which is now shut and explains that access to the Patparganj main road has been blocked by the police, with no vehicular movement permitted. The reporter then speaks to a local resident who says that since the announcement of the lockdown, there have been no prayers held at the dargah. The local resident further states, "The last namaz was held a day before the lockdown. Since then no prayers or gatherings have been held here."

Watch the video below:

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