In the middle of the ongoing tensions between India and Pakistan, pro-Pakistan netizens have been sharing a video with the claim that it is the same Indian Air Force (IAF) pilot who was arrested by Pakistani forces on Wednesday.
Sparked by war hysteria, social media went berserk on Wednesday as claims and counter-claims on crashed jets fed a rush of fake images and videos. But what took the cake was a Pak propaganda, passing off a video of the Surya Kiran crash in Bengaluru as a proof of shooting down an Indian jet.
In response to PAF strikes this morning as released by MoFA, IAF crossed LOC. PAF shot down two Indian aircrafts inside Pakistani airspace. One of the aircraft fell inside AJ&K while other fell inside IOK. One Indian pilot arrested by troops on ground while two in the area.
— Maj Gen Asif Ghafoor (@OfficialDGISPR) February 27, 2019
The actual video was about a pilot who ejected to safety after two Surya Kiran Advanced Jet Trainers (Hawks) collided mid-air and crashed on February 19. The crash site was Harohalli, ISRO Layout, near the Yelahanka Air Force Station and not in Pakistan, as it was made out to be.
But responding to Indian Twitterati's vociferous demand for proof of Pakistan shooting down an Indian jet, the Surya Kiran video came handy for many Pakistanis. Tweeted one of them, “Indian Pilot captured alive by Pakistan. Here’s the evidence India, and the whole world.”
Even as he claimed “That’s how things are done. With evidence. Your crow is in our hands. This is just the trailer. #DontMessWithPakistan,” came to a massive backlash.
2nd Indian Pilot Arrested Alive... pic.twitter.com/TaYWNCCljY
— Dr Shahid Masood (@Shahidmasooddr) February 27, 2019
#PakistanArmyZindabad
— Asād Yousafzai (@asad_aamin) February 27, 2019
2nd Indian Pilot Arrested Alive... pic.twitter.com/YkjSEBsc2U
@Shahidmasooddr
— shameemhusainsail (@ShameemSail) February 27, 2019
2nd Indian Pilot Arrested Alive... pic.twitter.com/RyXAX5Gjbx ///BRAVE,, MUBARAK,, #EARNED A BLN $$$$ TREASURE,,AN ASSET,, FOR, DEESCALATION & #NEXT,, NEGOTIATION,AUR,, , (#SABSE ZADA BHART KO,, TABLE O TAMIZ PE LANEME ),,,,,
Multiple people, among them Pakistanis shared the video to hail the action of the Pakistani army in striking back and congratulated their armed forces, with the hashtag PakistanArmyZindabad.
In the video, an injured pilot can be seen lying on the ground, evidently after a crash, holding out his hand. A person eventually holds his outstretched hand.
24 News HD, a Pakistani news channel, also used the video as footage of the pilot and the aircraft shot down by Pakistan on 27 February.
The video clearly had locals talking Kannada and offering help to the fallen pilot, Wing Commander Vijay Shelke.
“When did Pakistanis learn Kannada? Show some shame you Joker. This is a video of Bengaluru acrobatic plane crash pilot a few days back,” read one Indian response.
As the tweet and the video went viral, another desi tweet read: “Breaking news: Kannada being taught as vocational language in Pakistani Madrassas.”
But the fake news propaganda reached another level when Chairman and Managing Director of Pakistan Television (PTV) Shahid Masood showed the Surya Kiran video again to claim: “Second Indian pilot arrested alive."
FAKE NEWS: Pakistani Twitter handle with 500k+ followers peddles video of Feb 19 Surya Kiran crash survivor Vijay Shelke in Bangalore, saying it is captured IAF pilot. https://t.co/S0XvshScSA
— Shiv Aroor (@ShivAroor) February 27, 2019
FACT CHECK: It gets worse. Pakistani Twitter handles now also peddling videos of Surya Kiran crash survivor Vijay Shelke to suggest this is the captured IAF pilot in PoK. pic.twitter.com/O54kWBtclw
— Shiv Aroor (@ShivAroor) February 27, 2019
Journalist Barkha Dutt also called the video out, telling Dr Masood to check before sharing such videos.
She tweeted: “Please at least hear the accents in the background, Dr Masood before sharing fake videos of an old crash in India which the pilot survived.”
Please atleast hear the accents in the background Dr Masood before sharing fake videos of an old crash in India which the pilot survived https://t.co/HZQ9tQGFtB
— barkha dutt (@BDUTT) February 27, 2019
The video of Wg Cdr Vijay Shelke, who survived the Surya Kiran crash, had gone viral earlier for another reason: As the pilot lay waiting for help, an aeronautical engineering student consoled him, holding the latter's hand. The heartwarming video had turned out to be an instant hit.
The 22-year-old student, Chethan Kumar was later called by Wing Commander Vijay and his family to the hospital to express their gratitude.
Sections of the Pakistani media also put out a picture and footage of the wreckage of a MiG-21 that had unfortunately crashed in Jodhpur in 2016, and tried to pass it as an Indian fighter jet that had been brought down by the Pakistani military on Wednesday morning.
Let’s say thank you to the Indian Air Force.They successfully took out a terror camp yesterday and repulsed a Pak air attack today. It is only when we see the pictures of Wing Commander Abhinandan in custody that we realise how many risks they take to keep us safe
— vir sanghvi (@virsanghvi) February 27, 2019
We owe them
In the morning of February 27, reports also emerged from Pakistan that their air force had shot down two Indian Air Force aircraft on the Pakistani side of the LoC. “PAF shoots down two Indian aircraft inside Pakistani airspace; one pilot arrested”, read the headline of an article published by the leading Pakistani daily, Dawn. A photo of crashed aircraft surrounded by people was also provided with the article.
Iran’s Press TV also published the same report with an identical photo. The tweet by Press TV now stands deleted. ARY News has also reported the ‘news’ using the same image.
Fact checkers found that the image of the aircraft which is claimed to have crashed near the LoC in Pakistan is three years old. A simple Google search of the image shows that it pertains to an Indian Air Force fighter trainer aircraft that had crashed in Mayurbhanj district of Odisha in 2015.
Another image flashed by ARY News dates back to 2016 when a MiG-27 fighter plane crashed into a building in Rajasthan’s Jodhpur.
Photographs of the crashed aircraft, taken from different angles, is also available in the media. If one notices carefully, the number of the plane – TU657 – is identical.
Desperate #Pakistan shows 2016 footage of MIG crash in Jodhpur as Exclusive!!! Footage of MIG shot down in POK pic.twitter.com/0Ml4KKhP1J
— Sachin Singh (@sachinsingh1010) February 27, 2019
#PakFakeClaim | TIMES NOW EXPOSES PAKISTAN'S FAKERY
— TIMES NOW (@TimesNow) February 27, 2019
Vivek Narayan shows you the fake pictures put out by Pakistani media. pic.twitter.com/miZFC9nRVv