Claim: A social media video alleges that Pakistan’s national flag was spotted near Mumbai airport.
Fact: The claim is false as the video does not show the Pakistani flag. The flag in the video does not contain certain features of the Pakistani flag. For example, the white strip in the Pakistani flag which symbolizes minorities cannot be seen on the flag in the video.
On 21 December 2023, a user posted a video (archive) on X (formerly Twitter) with the caption, “Pakistani flag spotted near Bombay Airport.”
Fact or Fiction?
Upon closer inspection Soch Fact Check discovered that the flag in the video bears a close resemblance to the flag of the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), a political party based in Kerala, India. However, it is not identical to the IUML’s flag as the crescent sign is left to right on the flag in the video, but it’s right to left on the political party’s original flag.
Comparison between screen-grab from the video (left) and IUML flag (right)
Contrary to the claim, the flag in the video is not the flag of Pakistan either. The white strip on Pakistan’s national flag which represents minorities cannot be seen on the flag in the video.
A screengrab from viral video (left) and Pakistan’s national flag with white strip (right)
Furthermore, Soch Fact Check reached out to Pratyush Ranjan, head of fact-checking at Press Trust of India who said that the flag resembles IUML but it is not certain if it belongs to the party or not. Ranjan also shared that the location in the video is known as Jari mari (an informal neighbourhood in Mumbai).
Virality
The video with the false claim was shared here, and here on Facebook. It was also posted here on TikTok.
Conclusion: The video shared on social media does not show the Pakistani flag hoisted in India.
Background image in cover photo: Freepik
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