Muslims Beat Sadhu? 2018 Incident Resurfaces With False Claims

In 2018, the SSP of Dehradun had tweeted the man who was being claimed to be a ‘sadhu’ was actually an imposter.

An old incident that took place in 2018 in Dehradun has resurfaced to make false claims.

(Photo: Altered by The Quint)

A viral video in which a man is being beaten up by a group of people is being shared on social media with the claim that Muslims thrashed a sadhu (saint).

However, the incident is not recent and dates back to 2018. SSP Dehradun had then issued a clarification on Twitter, saying that the video was shared with misleading claims.

The tweet mentioned that the man was identified as Sushil Nath, an addict, impersonated himself as a beggar for alms and had molested a woman in August because of which, the woman’s brother Shubham and other locals beat him up and took him to the police station.

You can view the archived version here.(Source: Twitter/ Screenshot)

CLAIM

The claim along with the video reads: “मारने वाला मुस्लिम और मार खाने वाला एक साधु....!! 3 दिन के अंदर ये हाथ जोड़ता हुआ नजर आयेगा, अगर अच्छे से वायरल हुआ तो.....!! (sic)”

(Translated: The man who is beating is Muslim and the one who was beaten is a sadhu. He will be seen folding his hands within three days if this video goes viral.)

Several social media users have shared the video on Facebook and Twitter with the same claim.

You can view the archived version here.(Source: Facebook/ Screenshot)

You can view the archived version here.(Source: Twitter/ Screenshot)

The Quint received a query on the claims made in the viral video on its WhatsApp helpline.

(Source: WhatsApp/ Screenshot)

WHAT WE FOUND

The video was in circulation in 2018 as well with the claim that a ‘Naga Sadhu’ was beaten up by a Muslim mob. The SSP of Dehradun had then tweeted that the man who is being claimed as a ‘Naga Sadhu’ is actually an imposter.

In another tweet, the official handle of SSP Dehradun mentioned the claims on social media were misleading and that the man had impersonated a beggar for alms in the past as well. The man, identified as Sushil Nath, is an addict who has been involved in such matters in the past, the tweet mentioned.

“A case was registered against him under sections 354B, 504, 452, 376, 511 of the Indian Penal Code,” the tweet added.

Speaking to The Quint, Surya Bhushan Negi, SHO of Patel Nagar, said that a case was registered in the matter in 2018 and the locals who beat up the man were from both the communities – Hindu and Muslims.

Evidently, an old incident that took place in 2018 in Dehradun is being shared with false claims.

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