Video From Pakistan Shared to Push 'Muslims Behind Population Explosion' Theory

The interview was by a Pakistan-based news outlet 'Leader TV' and showed the interview of a man living in a slum.

The claim states that the video is from India.

(Photo: Altered by The Quint)

A video which shows an interview of a man living in a slum saying he has 15 children is being shared with the claim that the Muslim man is from India, alluding to the oft-repeated (and debunked) argument that Muslims are responsible for "population explosion" in India.

The claim further states that this is the reason why National Register of Citizens (NRC) and Population Control Bill, 2019 are necessary.

However, we found that the video is from Lahore, Pakistan and it showed the interview of a Muslim man living in a slum who says that he has 15 children.

This was also confirmed to The Quint by Anee Faisal, the reporter seen in the video.

CLAIM

The video is being shared along with the claim in Hindi that reads, "अभी चुप चाप बैठे तो कुछ सालों बाद नौकरी तो क्या देश में पैर रखने कि भी जगह नहीं मिलेगी इसलिए #एन_आर_सी ओर #जनसंख्या_नियंत्रण_कानून की सख्त आवश्यकता है खैर कानून आप बना तो नहीं सकते पर आम नागरिकों को जागरूक तो कर सकते हो।"

(Translation: If you sit silently now, then after a few years, you will not find a job in the country. Therefore, NRC and PCB, 2019 are strictly necessary. You cannot make laws, but you can make common citizens aware.)

An archive of the tweet can be seen here.

(Source: Twitter/Screenshot)

Several social media users have shared the video along with similar claims and the archived links can be seen here, here, here and here.

WHAT WE FOUND

In the video, we could see the logo of one 'Leader TV HD', which states that it is a Pakistan-based channel.

The watermark of 'Leader TV HD' could be seen in the video. 

(Photo: Altered by The Quint)

Next, we looked with relevant keywords on YouTube and found the video on their channel. The video was posted on 11 April and the caption read, 'How people who reside in slums live', along with the hashtag 'Pakistan'.

In the video, the man introduces his family and says that he has 15 children. He adds that his business has also been affected.

The viral part can be heard from 1:33-1:59 minutes.

We also looked up the reporter Anee Faisal, who is based out of Lahore as per her social media profile.

Speaking to The Quint, Faisal confirmed that the video is from Lahore and added that she had gone to cover another story, but found this family and interviewed them.

ARE MUSLIMS RESPONSIBLE FOR POPULATION EXPLOSION IN INDIA?

The assertion that Muslims are 'responsible for population explosion' in India is an oft-repeated narrative, which is not based in facts.

As per the 2011 Census report, in the 2001-2011 decade, the growth rate of the Muslim population fell by 4.7 percentage points from 29.3 percent to 24.6 percent as against the drop of 3 percentage points for Hindus from 19.9 percent to 16.8 percent.

Prior to this, in the 1991-2001 decade too, Muslim population fell more than Hindus. Therefore, in the last two census of India, the the pace of deceleration of Muslim population has been higher than that of Hindus.

Clearly, a video from Pakistan is being shared with the false claim that it is from India.

(Update: The story has been updated to add a confirmation from Anee Faisal, the reporter seen in the video)

(Not convinced of a post or information you came across online and want it verified? Send us the details on WhatsApp at 9643651818, or e-mail it to us at [e-mail] and we'll fact-check it for you. You can also read all our fact-checked stories here.)