#FactCheck-Stone Pelting Video from Mathura Misrepresented as Part of “Cockroach Janata Party” Campaign; Fact Check Reveals Old Incident
Executive Summary
A video showing stone pelting on vehicles is being widely shared on social media and falsely linked to a campaign called the “Cockroach Janata Party.” The claim suggests that people have taken to the streets and are attacking VIP vehicles by throwing stones. CyberPeace Research Wing research found that the video is from March and shows stone pelting on a police vehicle in Mathura following the killing of “Farasa Wale Baba.”
Claim
An 18-second viral clip circulating online shows a crowd throwing stones at passing vehicles. The video also contains overlaid text reading,“Cockroach sarkon par utar chuke hain, ab koi VIP nahi, ab sab barabar hain.”Users are sharing it as part of a supposed “Cockroach Janata Party” campaign.
Fact Check
A reverse image search of key frames shows that the clip was originally uploaded on multiple social media accounts on March 22–23, where it was described as an incident from Mathura following the death of a local figure known as “Farasa Wale Baba.” In those posts, the incident was reported as stone pelting on a police vehicle by miscreants.
Further verification found the same visuals in a video posted by NDTV India on March 21, 2026, with a caption stating that it showed stone pelting on police during unrest in Mathura after the death of “Farasa Wale Baba.”
Conclusion
The researchclearly confirms that the viral video has been misrepresented. The footage is from a March incident in Mathura involving unrest following a local death, and it has no connection to any “Cockroach Janata Party” campaign or VIP-targeted violence claims.
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Introduction
Intricate and winding are the passageways of the modern digital age, a place where the reverberations of truth effortlessly blend, yet hauntingly contrast, with the echoes of falsehood. Within this complex realm, the World Economic Forum (WEF) has illuminated the darkened corners with its powerful spotlight, revealing the festering, insidious network of misinformation and disinformation that snakes through the virtual and physical worlds alike. Gravely identified by the “WEF's Global Risks Report 2024” as the most formidable and immediate threats to our collective well-being, this malignant duo—misinformation and disinformation.
The report published with the solemn tone suitable for the prelude to such a grand international gathering as the Annual Summit in Davos, the report presents a vivid tableau of our shared global landscape—one that is dominated by the treacherous pitfalls of deceits and unverified claims. These perils, if unrecognised and unchecked by societal checks and balances, possess the force to rip apart the intricate tapestry of our liberal institutions, shaking the pillars of democracies and endangering the vulnerable fabric of social cohesion.
Election Mania
As we find ourselves perched on the edge of a future, one where the voices of nearly three billion human beings make their mark on the annals of history—within the varied electoral processes of nations such as Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Pakistan, the United Kingdom, and the United States. However, the spectre of misinformation can potentially corrode the integrity of the governing entities that will emerge from these democratic processes. The warning issued by the WEF is unambiguous: we are flirting with the possibility of disorder and turmoil, where the unchecked dispersion of fabrications and lies could kindle flames of unrest, manifesting in violent protests, hate-driven crimes, civil unrest, and the scourge of terrorism.
Derived from the collective wisdom of over 1,400 experts in global risk, esteemed policymakers, and industry leaders, the report crafts a sobering depiction of our world's journey. It paints an ominous future that increasingly endows governments with formidable power—to brandish the weapon of censorship, to unilaterally declare what is deemed 'true' and what ought to be obscured or eliminated in the virtual world of sharing information. This trend signals a looming potential for wider and more comprehensive repression, hindering the freedoms traditionally associated with the Internet, journalism, and unhindered access to a panoply of information sources—vital fora for the exchange of ideas and knowledge in a myriad of countries across the globe.
Prominence of AI
When the gaze of the report extends further over a decade-long horizon, the prominence of environmental challenges such as the erosion of biodiversity and alarming shifts in the Earth's life-support systems ascend to the pinnacle of concern. Yet, trailing closely, the digital risks continue to pulsate—perpetuated by the distortions of misinformation, the echoing falsities of disinformation, and the unpredictable repercussions stemming from the utilization and, at times, the malevolent deployment of artificial intelligence (AI). These ethereal digital entities, far from being illusory shades, are the precursors of a disintegrating world order, a stage on which regional powers move to assert and maintain their influence, instituting their own unique standards and norms.
The prophecies set forth by the WEF should not be dismissed as mere academic conjecture; they are instead a trumpet's urgent call to mobilize. With a startling 30 percent of surveyed global experts bracing for the prospect of international calamities within the mere span of the coming two years, and an even more significant portion—nearly two-thirds—envisaging such crises within the forthcoming decade, it is unmistakable that the time to confront and tackle these looming risks is now. The clarion is sounding, and the message is clear: inaction is no longer an available luxury.
Maldives and India Row
To pluck precise examples from the boundless field of misinformation, we might observe the Lakshadweep-Malé incident wherein an ordinary boat accident off the coast of Kerala was grotesquely transformed into a vessel for the far-reaching tendrils of fabricated narratives, erroneously implicating Lakshadweep in the spectacle. Similarly, the tension-laden India-Maldives diplomatic exchange becomes a harrowing testament to how strained international relations may become fertile ground for the rampant spread of misleading content. The suspension of Maldivian deputy ministers following offensive remarks, the immediate tumult that followed on social media, and the explosive proliferation of counterfeit news targeting both nations paint a stark and intricate picture of how intertwined are the threads of politics, the digital platforms of social media, and the virulent propagation of falsehoods.
Yet, these are mere fragments within the extensive and elaborate weave of misinformation that threatens to enmesh our globe. As we venture forth into this dangerous and murky topography, it becomes our collective responsibility to maintain a sense of heightened vigilance, to consistently question and verify the sources and content of the information that assails us from all directions, and to cultivate an enduring culture anchored in critical thinking and discernment. The stakes are colossal—for it is not merely truth itself that we defend, but rather the underlying tenets of our societies and the sanctity of our cherished democratic institutions.
Conclusion
In this fraught era, marked indelibly by uncertainty and perched precariously on the cusp of numerous pivotal electoral ventures, let us refuse the role of passive bystanders to unraveling our collective reality. We must embrace our role as active participants in the relentless pursuit of truth, fortified with the stark awareness that our entwined futures rest precariously on our willingness and ability to distinguish the veritable from the spurious within the perilous lattice of falsehoods of misinformation. We must continually remind ourselves that, in the quest for a stable and just global order, the unerring discernment of fact from fiction becomes not only an act of intellectual integrity but a deed of civic and moral imperative.
References
- https://www.businessinsider.in/politics/world/election-fuelled-misinformation-is-serious-global-risk-in-2024-says-wef/articleshow/106727033.cms
- https://www.deccanchronicle.com/nation/current-affairs/100124/misinformation-tops-global-risks-2024.html
- https://www.msn.com/en-in/news/India/fact-check-in-lakshadweep-male-row-kerala-boat-accident-becomes-vessel-for-fake-news/ar-AA1mOJqY
- https://www.boomlive.in/news/india-maldives-muizzu-pm-modi-lakshadweep-fact-check-24085
- https://www.weforum.org/press/2024/01/global-risks-report-2024-press-release/
Executive Summary
A video is being widely shared on social media showing two men seated on chairs when police personnel arrive and begin assaulting them. A flag of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s party, the Trinamool Congress (TMC), can also be seen in the footage. The video is being circulated with the claim that during the first phase of polling held on April 23, 2026, two TMC workers were issuing voter slips near a polling booth when security forces reached the spot and beat them. However, research by the CyberPeace Research Wing found the claim to be false. The footage is not recent and has no connection to the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections.
Claim:
Social media users alleged that police assaulted TMC workers during the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections. An X user, Abhimanyu Singh, shared the clip claiming that two “peaceful” TMC workers were sitting near polling stations issuing voter slips when a policeman slapped and beat them with a baton, forcing them to flee.
- https://x.com/Abhimanyu1305/status/2047317736825790549
- https://archive.ph/0ceXH
Fact Check:
To verify the claim, keyframes from the viral video were subjected to a reverse image search. This led to the same video being found on a Facebook page named Canning News, where it had been uploaded in 2023. The caption stated: “Take a look at the situation in Basanti, Canning, on election day.”
Further searches found the clip published by News18 Bangla on July 6, 2023. The report described unrest during the 2023 Panchayat elections, stating that allegations of bomb throwing had surfaced in Basanti the previous night. On the morning of polling, a bomb was reportedly recovered from the roadside, creating panic in the area.
According to the report, police intervened to control the situation and took action wherever crowds had gathered. The footage showed police dispersing people with batons and, at times, physically confronting individuals.
Conclusion:
The viral claim is misleading. The video is from the 2023 Panchayat elections in West Bengal and is being falsely linked to the recent 2026 Assembly elections.
Executive Summary:
A video is rapidly circulating on social media following claims that Iran’s national security chief Ali Larijani was killed in an Israeli airstrike. The viral clip is being shared with the assertion that it shows the moment Israel launched a powerful attack on Iran to eliminate Larijani, allegedly shaking the ground due to the intensity of the strike However, research by CyberPeace has found the claim to be misleading. The viral video is AI-generated and has no connection to real-world events.
Claim:
Social media users have shared the video with alarming captions. One such post by Deepak Sharma reads:
“WAR UPDATE… Iran is in its final phase… Israel is striking selectively… This attack will leave you shocked… Iran’s national security chief Ali Larijani has been killed in this attack… The intensity of the strike shook the Iranian الأرض.
Post links:
Similar videos were also shared by other users:
- urabh_raj3026/status/2038834832869032026
- https://x.com/ibmindia20/status/2038938020154597447
- https://x.com/Saurabh_raj3026/status/2038834832869032026
Fact Check
To verify the claim, we extracted keyframes from the viral video and conducted a reverse image search. During this process, we found the same video on Instagram, uploaded on March 9, 2026, by the account “_iranwar_2026” without any descriptive caption.
According to a BBC report, Ali Larijani died on March 17 in an Israeli strike. This establishes that the viral video predates the reported incident, making the claim factually inconsistent. Further examination of the Instagram account revealed that it frequently shares pro-Iran content, including gaming visuals and AI-generated clips, raising doubts about the authenticity of the video.
To strengthen the verification, we analyzed the viral clip using the AI detection tool “Zhuque AI Detection Assistant.” The results indicated a 91.71% probability that the video is AI-generated, confirming that it is not real footage.
Conclusion
The viral claim linking the video to an Israeli airstrike that allegedly killed Ali Larijani is misleading and factually incorrect. Multiple layers of verification show that the video existed online before the reported incident, ruling out any direct connection. Additionally, AI detection analysis strongly suggests that the video is artificially generated. The source account’s pattern of sharing AI and gaming-related content further weakens the credibility of the claim. There is no verified evidence to support that the viral clip depicts a real attack or any event related to Larijani’s death. Instead, the video appears to be a digitally created visual circulated without context to amplify misinformation.
