A viral video falsely claiming that Indian Muslims started arson in Delhi has been debunked by the Press Information Bureau’s (PIB) Fact Check unit.
The video, widely circulated on social media, was found to be an old clip of a recent fire at the Delhi Haat market in the INA area. The unit shared a report to substantiate its findings and urged the public not to fall for such misinformation.
The PIB Fact Check team emphasized that citizens should rely only on verified information from government and official sources. It noted that such fake news is part of a well-orchestrated propaganda campaign aimed at misleading the public and disturbing communal harmony.
In a social media post on X, the official PIB Fact Check handle said: “A video going viral on social media is falsely claiming that Indian Muslims have started arson in Delhi. This video is actually of the massive fire that broke out at Delhi Haat market in the INA area of Delhi on the evening of April 30, 2025. This is part of a well-planned propaganda campaign to mislead the public and disturb communal harmony. Please trust only verified information from the government and official sources.”
These clarifications come amidst heightened tensions between India and Pakistan following Operation Sindoor, during which India targeted nine terror infrastructures in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). In response, Pakistan attempted a large-scale drone attack on Thursday.
Pakistan-based social media handles have intensified their misinformation campaigns in an attempt to distort the ground reality and sabotage the prevailing narrative amid escalating bilateral tensions. The PIB Fact Check unit has played a key role in debunking several such false claims.
Earlier today, it also clarified that a viral image claiming multiple explosions at the Jammu Air Force Base was misleading. The image was actually from the Kabul Airport blast in August 2021 and had no connection to any recent events in India.
In another case, the Fact Check unit dismissed false reports of an attack on Gujarat’s Hazira Port. A video showing a massive fire and explosions was falsely attributed to a recent Pakistani strike. The footage was confirmed to be from an oil tanker explosion on July 7, 2021, and unrelated to Hazira Port.
The efforts of the PIB Fact Check unit have been vital in countering misinformation and upholding public trust during this sensitive time.