Asked to pay toll tax at the Chhajarsi toll plaza in Pilkhuwa of Uttar Pradesh's Hapur district, a bulldozer driver damaged at least two toll booths with his JCB around 8:30 am on Tuesday, June 11. The incident was filmed by the toll plaza employees.
As videos of the incident went viral on social media, several users started claiming that the perpetrators were Muslims. Sagar Kumar, who is a 'journalist' associated with Right-wing propaganda outlet Sudarshan News, tweeted two videos -- one of the incident and another of the alleged perpetrator -- claiming that the 'terror of angry driver Mohammad Sajid Ali was on display' when he was asked to pay toll tax. (Archive)
Right-wing influencer MeghUpdates also tweeted the same videos and claimed that UP police had given 'proper servicing' to the perpetrator Sajid. (Archive)
'Journalist' Ashwini Shrivastava, who claims to show his audiences what 'mainstream media' doesn't, also claimed that the perpetrator in question was a Muslim man named Mohammad Sajid Ali. (Archive)
Several other Right-wing users tweeted the same videos with the claim that the accused in question was a Muslim. (Archives 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
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Fact Check
After the claims went viral, Hapur Police issued a video statement. According to SP Abhishek Verma, the JCB driver was arrested after the incident and the JCB was seized. The man was charged under Section 307 of the Indian Penal Code. SP Verma also informed that when the driver was trying to flee the scene of the alleged crime, other cars were also damaged. Written complaints had been received from the concerned drivers and a case was registered against him under the relevant section at the Garhmukteshwar police station. The JCB driver was under the influence of alcohol.
In a later statement, SP Verma informed that the driver's name was Dheeraj, son of Vidyaram. The perpetrator hails from Janpath Badaun and is 23-24 years old. He works as a labourer and was under the influence of alcohol at the time of the incident.
The name of the accused was also clarified in a press note.
We also spoke to SHO Pilkhuwa who informed us that the owner of the JCB was a man named Sajid Ali. He also owned a brick kiln. The accused, Dheeraj, took the JCB without his knowledge.
Hence, the claims by the Right-wing influencers that the perpetrator in the Hapur incident was a Muslim are false. The inebriated JCB driver, who destroyed toll booths when asked to pay toll, was identified by police as Dheeraj, son of Vidyaram.
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