New Delhi, Feb 24 (Kaushiki Goel / Pratyush Ranjan, PTI Fact Check): Multiple social media users recently shared a video of a woman raising concerns about passenger safety on trains. She claimed that while traveling from Jaipur to Sri Ganganagar, some individuals created disturbances and misbehaved under the influence of alcohol.
She claimed that while traveling from Jaipur to Sri Ganganagar, some individuals created disturbances and misbehaved under the influence of alcohol.
However, an investigation by the PTI Fact Check Desk found that the incident did not occur recently. The viral video dates back to 2023, and the accused passengers were arrested after the incident was reported.
Claim
On February 22, a Facebook user shared a video of a woman raising questions about the safety of passengers on trains, claiming that some people created problems after drinking alcohol on the train.
The woman in the 1:47 second video says: ‘It is 1:00 am, and I am travelling from Jaipur to Sri Ganganagar in second class AC. Three people sitting in the next compartment are drinking alcohol and have been abusing. I tried to warn them, but nothing changed…What is surprising is that there is not a single police officer on the train…‘
Here is the link and archive link to the video, and below is a screenshot.
Investigation
The Desk ran the viral video through the InVid tool and extracted multiple keyframes. Upon running one of the keyframes through Google Lens, the Desk found several other users sharing the same video with similar claims. Two such posts can be viewed here and here, and its archived version can be seen here and here.
Upon running one of the keyframes through Google Lens, the Desk found several other users sharing the same video with similar claims.
On further scanning the search results, the Desk came across the viral video uploaded on X by Gayatri Bishnoi, President of the AAP Rajasthan State Women Wing, on November 20, 2023.
The caption of the post read: ‘Not only women, no passenger is safe in @IRCTCofficial.It is a matter of great surprise that at 1 o’clock in the night, some miscreants are openly consuming drugs and harassing passengers by using foul language. When I tried to complain, I found that not a single RPF / JRPF was deployed in the entire train. When my TT complained, the police came after 1 hour. Meanwhile, the miscreants kept threatening me. With the help of fellow passengers, I stood firm in the whole matter till the police came. But if any accident had happened during this 1 hour, who would have been responsible for it?‘
Here is the link to the post, and below is a screenshot.
We scanned the post and found a comment on the video by North Western Railway on November 1, 2023. The comment read: ‘On 20.11.2023, information was received about some persons creating a nuisance in coach number HA-1 of train number 22997 Shri Ganganagar Express. On reaching the next station, Resub Degana attended the complaint, took immediate action, caught 03 persons causing a nuisance in the said coach, and took legal action.’
Here is the link to the comment, and below is a screenshot.
On further analysing Gayatri Bishnoi’s X handle, we found another X post by her dated November 20, 2023, in which she shared a photo that mentioned the action taken by RPF regarding the entire incident.
Here is the link to the post, and below is a screenshot.
Furthermore, the Desk conducted a customised keyword search on Google to find relevant media reports and came across a report by Times of India, dated November 21, 2023, whose headline read: “3 Held For Drinking In Train After Aap Leader’s Tweet”
A section of the report read: ‘Three train passengers were arrested in Nagaur district on Monday for allegedly consuming alcohol and misbehaving with passengers after a leader of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) travelling in the train tweeted about the incident.‘
A section of the report read: ‘Three train passengers were arrested in Nagaur district on Monday for allegedly consuming alcohol and misbehaving with passengers after a leader of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) travelling in the train tweeted about the incident.‘
Here is the link to the report.
Subsequently, the Desk concluded that the viral video was not recent, but dates back to 2023.
CLAIM
A recent video of a woman complaining about passengers harassing her after drinking alcohol on the train.
FACT
The viral video is not recent, but it dates back to 2023 when the passengers were arrested after the incident was reported.
CONCLUSION
A video of a woman raising questions about the safety of passengers on trains was recently shared on social media, claiming that some people created problems after drinking alcohol on the train. In its investigation, the Desk found that the viral video does show a recent happening, but it all dates back to 2023. The passengers were arrested after the AAP leader reported the incident.
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This story was originally published by PTI News and republished by Feminism in India as part of the Shakti Collective.
