Sharjeel Imam’s name has been all over the headlines and social media.

It all started when a 2.20-minute video from Imam’s controversial hour-long speech went viral on social media.

It was wrongly mentioned everywhere that the speech occurred at the Shaheen Bagh protest.

The official spokesperson of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Sambit Patra, tweeted claiming ‘this was the reality of the Shaheen Bagh protests.’

दोस्तों शाहीन बाग़ की असलियत देखें:१)असम को इंडिया से काट कर अलग करना हमारी ज़िम्मेदारी२)’Chicken Neck’ मुसलमानो का है३)इतना मवाद डालो पटरी पे की इंडिया की फ़ौज Assam जा ना सके४)सारे ग़ैर मुसलमानो को मुसलमानों के शर्त पर ही आना होगाIf this is not ANTI NATIONAL then what is? pic.twitter.com/kgxl3GLwx1

— Sambit Patra (@sambitswaraj) January 25, 2020

Listen to Sharjeel Imam speaking at Shaheen Bagh. He wants to break Assam from India. He is an IITIAN n JNUites. He writes for The Wire n other left wing sites.Important thing is @arvindkejriwal supports this. Every Delhites should know it! Share 🙏🏻 pic.twitter.com/OyrTByujl6

— Shash (@pokershash) January 25, 2020

From different angle-This is Shaheen Bagh. This is what @arvindkejriwal and @rahulgandhi support.’5 lakh people attended rally of Kanhaiya, 5 lakh people are enough to cut Assam from India’ Sharjeel Imampic.twitter.com/ZvE16p8BW8

— Shash (@pokershash) January 25, 2020

सभी से अपील: आज से #शाहीनबाग़ नहीं #तौहीनबाग कहेंFrom today instead of #ShaheenBagh it should be #TauheenBaghSharjeel Imam talking with a tricolour in the background this is a Muslim protest not secular🤢🤢 pic.twitter.com/ji1wFUW5cI

— Ranjeet Kumar Singh☕☕ #IndiaSupportsCAA (@ranjeet87035789) January 25, 2020

‘Aim is to cut Assam and Northeast from India’: Former JNU student Sharjeel Imam at Shaheen Bagh protest#ShaheenBagh #ShaheenBaghProtest #SharjeelImam #Assam https://t.co/UTsJPEtvO1

— India TV (@indiatvnews) January 25, 2020

Sambit Patra repeated the same false claim in a press conference held in Delhi.

Claim:

Sharjeel Imam’s controversial speech was made during the Shaheen Bagh protest.

Fact Check:

The speech was made during a protest at Aligarh.

The exact location of the speech was at the Bab-e-Syed, which is the main gate of the Aligarh Muslim University.

On January 17, 2020, a youtube channel called ‘Youth Neeti’ posted a video titled ‘Sharjeel Imam Students Activist JNU | Day 32 AMU PROTEST AGAINST CAA NRC NPR.’

This clearly shows that the protest where the speech was made, happened at Aligarh Muslim University (AMU).

The entire video of the original hour-long speech can be found on Facebook.

On January 25, 2020, news agency ANI reported that a case was registered against JNU student Sharjeel Imam in Aligarh for his controversial speech delivered during the students protest at Aligarh Muslim University, on January 16, against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and National Register of Citizens (NRC).

This further reiterates the fact that this speech belonged to the protest organized at the Aligarh Muslim University.

A Twitter account, that claims to be the official handle of the Shaheen Bagh protesters, has responded to the allegations, distancing itself from the alleged comments.

The protest at Shaheen Bagh is to protect the constitutional morality of this nation.No one individual’s videos, statements or articles can represent the movement.#ShaheenBaghTruth pic.twitter.com/vldJ9V8hsD

— Shaheen Bagh Official (@Shaheenbaghoff1) January 25, 2020

Also read: Sedition Case Against Sharjeel Imam For ‘Inflammatory Speech’