Claim: Pakistan has shot down an Indian Sukhoi jet near Bahawalpur for violating the Line of Control (LoC).
Fact: No such incident took place. An accompanying image is from June 2024 when an Indian jet crashed in Nashik, Maharashtra, due to what was reported to be a “technical snag”.
On 27 April 2025, Facebook page ‘Mianwali News’ posted (archive) a visual showing a crashed aircraft, alongside text that reads as follows:
“بریکنگ نیوز ایل او سی خلاف ورزی پر پاکستان نے پہاولپور کے قریب انڈین سخوئی طیارہ مار گرایا
[Breaking News: Pakistan shoots down Indian Sukhoi jet near Bahawalpur for violating the LoC]”
The aforementioned text was also copied in the post’s caption, with the addition of “پاکستان زندہ آباد [Long live Pakistan].”
The Line of Control (LoC) is a de facto border that divides Kashmir into two regions administered by Pakistan and India.
The LoC was established in 1972 as part of the Simla Agreement — signed by then-Pakistani President Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and former Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi — following the 1971 war between the two nations.
The Pahalgam attack
On 22 April 2025, gunmen opened fire on travellers in the Baisaran meadow in Pahalgam, a popular tourist destination in Indian-administered Kashmir, killing 26 men and injuring “at least three dozen people”, according to police officials, who added that there were at least four militants.
In response, Indian authorities launched a large-scale manhunt, detaining at least 1,500 people in the region and destroying “several homes linked to alleged militants”.
Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry expressed concern at the loss of lives and called for a neutral investigation into the attack. The country conveyed its willingness to cooperate and emphasised its commitment to peace and sovereignty.
India, on the other hand, accused Pakistan of supporting “cross-border terrorism”, while Defense Minister Khawaja Asif shot back, saying New Delhi “staged [the attack] to create some sort of crisis in the region” and warning that any strike from the eastern neighbour could lead to an “all-out war”.
Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar termed India’s allegations as “baseless blame games” and demanded it present evidence for its claims against Pakistan.
After the attack, India closed a key land border with Pakistan, suspended the Indus Waters Treaty, and barred Pakistani citizens from entering under a visa exemption scheme. The two nuclear-armed neighbours also expelled “each other’s diplomats, military attaches and hundreds of civilians”.
Among the tit-for-tat moves announced by Pakistan after a meeting of its National Security Committee (NSC) was a “a threat to suspend its participation in all bilateral agreements”, including the Simla Agreement, with the eastern neighbour.
Moreover, the two countries’ armies exchanged gunfire along the LoC for four nights in a row.
On 26 April, The Resistance Front (TRF) — a relatively lesser-known militant group that India considers to be an offshoot of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) — distanced itself from the attack after several news outlets had reported that it claimed responsibility. The outfit said a social media post reportedly acknowledging its involvement was the result of a “coordinated cyber intrusion”.
As tensions between the two countries escalate, the UN has urged both to exercise “maximum restraint” and not let the situation deteriorate further. In a similar vein, China — Pakistan’s ally and a key player in the region — also issued a statement, advising “restraint” and dialogue.
On the other hand, the US State Department said it was in touch with both the countries, urging them to work towards a “responsible solution”. However, while President Donald Trump expressed his country’s “full support [to] and deepest sympathies” for India, he also made a gaffe by saying Pakistan and its neighbour “have had that fight for a thousand years in Kashmir” and that “there’s been tensions on that border for 1,500 years”.
Amid heightened tensions between the two neighbouring countries, multiple false and misleading claims have emerged on social media. Soch Fact Check has investigated and debunked them here, here, here, here, and here.
Fact or Fiction?
Soch Fact Check first checked whether any reputable media outlet had reported on any Indian fighter jet being downed by Pakistan’s armed forces as it would be considered major breaking news; however, we did not find any such news report.
Moreover, the claim asserts that the Indian Sukhoi jet was shot down “near Bahawalpur for violating the LoC”. However, the LoC is in Kashmir whereas Bahawalpur is in south Punjab.
The straight-line distance between Bahawalpur and the southern starting point of the LoC is over 450 kilometres and between the city to the Pakistan-India border more than 90 km.
As for the accompanying image, a reverse image search led us to different social media posts and news reports by Indian media outlets from June 2024.
The Hindu reported on 4 June 2024 that “an SU-30MKI fighter jet of the Indian Air Force (IAF) crashed in Nashik”, a city in the Maharashtra state. It quoted a Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) official as saying that the aircraft “was recently overhauled” and “was on a test sortie from HAL Nashik at Sirsa gaon”.
“Both the pilots of HAL have ejected to safety. A technical snag was reported by the pilots. The exact reason will only be known after detailed investigation,” the HAL official noted, according to the publication.
India Today said the plane caught fire after it crashed, but the blaze was doused. Its parts were spread over a 500-metre radius, according to a police officer. The jet was piloted by “wing commander Bokil and his second in command Biswas” when it met the accident, according to the Hindustan Times.
Multiple other outlets had reported on the incident as well.
Soch Fact Check, therefore, concludes that the claim is baseless.
Virality
Soch Fact Check found the claim shared here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here on Facebook, here, here, and here on Instagram, and here, here, here, here, and here on X (formerly Twitter).
It was also posted here on LinkedIn.
Conclusion: Pakistan has not downed any Indian jet following the Pahalgam incident in Kashmir. An accompanying image shows an Indian jet that crashed in June 2024 in Nashik, Maharashtra, due to what was reported to be a “technical snag”.
Background image in cover photo: Kevin Woblick
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