Maharashtra: A video of policemen thrashing a man with sticks is going viral across social media with a claim that he is being beaten for disconnecting oxygen supplies to patients so that he can transport their dead bodies in his ambulance and make a profit out of it. Many have claimed that he is Naseem, an ambulance driver from Nizamabad, Telangana.
The video went viral across Facebook and Twitter with the following claim, “*ये पंचर पुत्र, मदरसा छाप, नसीम मियां निजामाबाद हॉस्पिटल में पेशेंट की ऑक्सीजन बंद कर दिया करता था, ताकि इसकी एंबुलेंस का बिजनेस हो सके।15 से ज्यादा लोगों को इसने मौत के घाट उतारा। पुलिस ने पकड़ा और इसका सही बिजनेस कर दिया।*” (Naseem Mian, used to shut down the oxygen of the patient at Nizamabad Hospital so that patients can travel in his ambulance and that will profit his business. He killed more than 15 people. The police caught it and gave him right business.) Find more claims here, here, and here.
FactO Check:
A reverse image search of some keyframes from the viral video directed us to a YouTube video published by Hindustan Times on May 27, 2021. According to HT, the incident took place at Jalan Deepak Hospital in Maharashtra on April 9. The man in the video was identified as Shivraj Nariyalwale, BJP youth secretary. Shivraj later spoke to the press about the issue and said, “I had gone to the hospital for some personal work. I then got to know that an acquaintance was admitted there. I went to see that person, however, he died after some time. Many others had gathered to see him, and soon the hospital called the police. As I was about to leave, I saw police surrounding someone I know. I went near & could hear them abusing our community people. I soon started making a video of it one of them saw me doing it. Then they came to me & started beating all of us with sticks.
With a relevant keyword search, we also found a tweet from ANI quoting Inspector Prashant Mahajan who said, “Following death of a patient on April 10, his family vandalized hospital premises. Police used force against them to drive them out”
Maharashtra | Jalna Police seen beating up BJP Youth Secy Shivraj Nariyalwale in viral video
"Following death of a patient on April 10, his family vandalized hospital premises. Police used force against them to drive them out," says Inspector Prashant Mahajan, Kadim Jalna PS pic.twitter.com/qqPrBjVP1W
— ANI (@ANI) May 27, 2021
There is also a tweet by Sunil Deodhar, BJP National Secretary, identifying the man in the viral video as Yuva Morcha’s district sec. Shivraj.
See how @BJP4Maharashtra’s Yuva Morcha @BJYM4MH Dist Gen Sec Shivraj (Belongs to NT-B) was mercilessly beaten By police of @OfficeofUT @PawarSpeaks @RahulGandhi In Jalna.
Is this a crime to raise voice against injustice?
Where are the Human Rights activists now?@BJYM @India_NHRC pic.twitter.com/wYjaH9v3m4— Sunil Deodhar (@Sunil_Deodhar) May 27, 2021
Conclusion: The man in the video is identified as Shivraj, Maharashtra BJP Yuva Morcha Secretary. The above claims identifying the man as an ambulance driver from Nizamabad, Telangana obstructing oxygen supplies to patients is found to be false and misleading.