Amid rising tensions between India and Pakistan following India’s precision strikes on terror camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, hostile elements from Pakistan have been actively spreading misinformation. Their primary aim is to distort the ground reality and create fear among the Indian public.
Following India’s retaliation during Operation
Following India’s retaliation during Operation Sindoor against the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam, intense misinformation campaigns were launched by Pakistan-based social media handles, which had been actively and successfully debunked by the Fact Check of the Press Information Bureau (PIB).
The PIB’s fact-check unit debunked seven instances between late Wednesday night and early Thursday that showed the Pakistani side fabricating a narrative in their support.
In a press brief, the Fact Check Unit compiled the seven instances, debunked them, put the facts straight and slammed the misinformation spread in order to disrupt.
The unit debunked a video claiming to be a drone attack in Jalandhar, noting that it was an unrelated video of a farm fire. The PIB unit also stated that the timeline of the video was posted at 7:39 PM, while the drone attack by Pakistan began much later. The same was backed by the District Collector of Jalandhar
Another video falsely claimed that a Pakistani army attack destroyed an Indian post, which the fact-check unit debunked, confirming that the video was staged and part of Pakistan’s propaganda campaign. The unit noted that there was no “20 Raj Battalion” in the Indian Army, which was shown in the video.
An old video was also shared claiming Pakistan launched a missile attack on India, but the unit identified it as footage from an explosive attack in Beirut, Lebanon, in 2020.
Information about a ‘fidayeen’ attack on an Army brigade in Rajouri, Jammu and Kashmir, was widely circulated but the fact-check unit confirmed that no such attack occurred, flagging the claim as intended to mislead and cause confusion.
A purported confidential letter from the Chief of the Army Staff (CoAS), General VK Narayan, regarding military preparedness was debunked, and PIB confirmed that General Narayan is not the CoAS, and the letter was entirely fabricated.
In another case of debunking, PIB exposed a baseless claim on social media where it stated that the Indian military used Ambala Airbase to attack Amritsar and its citizens.
Another post alleged entry bans into airports across India, which the Fact Check unit debunked, confirming no such decision was taken by the Union Government.
The PIB Fact Check’s efforts in debunking fake news and busting myths have been crucial in maintaining public trust and countering attempts to destabilise the nation through misinformation during such times.