Fact Check: Viral video showing burqa-clad man arrested by cops occurred in Kurnool
A video showing police officers detaining a person dressed in a burqa, who is later revealed to be a man, is viral on various social media platforms.
Hyderabad: A video showing police officers detaining a person dressed in a burqa, who is later revealed to be a man, is viral on various social media platforms. Netizens claim that some people, including the burqa-clad man, were held for pelting stones at the police and for attempting to defame the Muslim community.
The video was shared with a hashtag related to the 2023 Karnataka Assembly Election that took place recently, further claiming that the incident took place in Karnataka.
FACT CHECK:
Upon performing a keyword search, we found a video report by ETV Andhra Pradesh uploaded in August 2020. The video is titled, "Several Arrested | for Transfer Illegal Liquor with Wearing Burqa | at Kurnool Dist.” The description states that several people were arrested by the police in Andhra Pradesh's Kurnool district after police recovered liquor bottles hidden inside their burqas.
Another news report by India Today in August 2020 also confirms that the video shows Andhra Pradesh police arresting a burqa-clad man and few others for transporting liquor illegally from Telangana to Andhra Pradesh. The Kurnool SP, Fakkeerappa Kaginelli, confirmed that the case was related to smuggling NDPL (non-duty paid liquor). The man had disguised himself as a woman in order to escape checking at the police check-post. The incident took place on August 7, 2020, and the accused was arrested.
Evidently, it is clear that this incident was neither recent nor that it took place in Karnataka. It has no connection with the 2023 state elections.
Thus, the claim is false.