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Uttar Pradesh
Tanga Owners Harassed In Lucknow After Islamic Symbol Misunderstood As Pakistan's Flag
|Two Muslim men were harassed in Lucknow and forced to chant "Pakistan Murdabad" because of a crescent moon and star painted on their rickshaw.
A video of a quarrel between two tanga (horse-pulled rickshaw) drivers and an unidentified man is being shared on social media. A voice can be heard in the video, and the speaker claims that the tanga drivers have imprinted Pakistan's flag on the tanga and have been using it the same way for the last 20-22 years. The unidentified man recording the video harasses the Muslim drivers and compel them to chant 'Jai Hind', 'Bharat Mata ki Jai', 'Pakistan Murdabad', and 'Hindustan Zindabad'.
The tanga owners make the chants but are further compelled to say 'Pakistan Murdabad' to which one driver angrily asks why should they make such chants and walks away, saying that he will hail both countries, Hindustan and Pakistan.
The video recorder further alleges that the tanga owners have a problem saying 'Hindustan Zinadabad' but have no shame saying 'Pakistan Zindabad'.
The video is shared on Facebook with the same claim.
Several news media outlets, right-wing propaganda websites, and journalists amplified the claim with the video. News media outlets like Amar Ujala and Jagran carried the same claim while covering the story.
Newsroom Post, a news media outlet, shared the video and captioned it in Hindi, "लखनऊ में एक तांगे पर पाकिस्तान जैसे झंडे का वीडियो वायरल, पाक मुर्दाबाद के नारे पर छिड़ गई बहस" (Video of Pakistan-like flag on a tanga in Lucknow went viral, an argument broke out over the slogan of 'Pak Murdabad.')
Kreately, a right-wing propaganda website, shared the video and requested UP and Lucknow police to take appropriate action. They captioned in Hindi, "'हां हमने झंडा लगा रखा है,हम तो पाकिस्तान जिंदाबाद भी बोलेंगे..' (Yes we have put up the flag, we will also say Pakistan Zindabad..).
Pawan Tiwari, the deputy news editor at Dainik Jagran, shared the video with the same claim.
Claim:
The drivers had imprinted Pakistan's flag on their tanga.
Fact Check:
The Logical Indian fact-check team verified the claim and found it false. The symbol imprinted on tanga is not Pakistan's flag but an Islamic symbol. The owner of the tanga identified as Noor Alam (blue shirt) and Wasir (grey t-shirt). The viral incident is of Telibagh, Lucknow.
We made a comparison of the imprint on tanga and Pakistan's flag. The tanga has rough designs of crescent and star on a dark green background, whereas Pakistan's flag has a crescent and a star at a 45-degree angle with a white stripe on the left.
The Telibagh outpost in charge intervened, spoke to both parties, and put the matter to rest. He said that the imprint on tanga is an Islamic symbol, not Pakistan's flag, The Print reported.
SM Hoaxslayer contacted a police officer in Lucknow who stated, "I've known the driver for a while, he sometimes helps the police with Durga Pooja celebrations as well. He's a poor chap, and hasn't been able to buy himself a tempo like his peers. The issue was blown out of proportion after powerful people, including the MLA, visited and forced him to put an Indian flag on his tanga. It is an Islamic flag and not a Pakistani flag."
Later, Newsroom Post also published a report and mentioned that the Telibagh outpost in charge spoke to both parties and explained that the mark in the tanga, which is misunderstood as the Pakistani flag, is actually the symbol of Karbala. Later, the tanga was painted with black colour to avoid further controversies.
Thus, we conclude that an imprint of an Islamic symbol on a tanga was misunderstood as Pakistan's flag.
If you have any news that you believe needs to be fact-checked, please email us at factcheck@thelogicalindian.com or WhatsApp at 6364000343.
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