A Facebook page named ‘PTI Overseas’ posted a video claiming that the Station House Officer police station Kohsar, Islamabad, has resigned from his position in response to the orders he received to stop Long March, Haqiqi Azadi March, organized by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf. In the video the man clad in a traditional white dress can be seen holding a wireless set. He can be heard saying that he has decided to quit his police job and join Imran Khan’s long march against the coalition government led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).
When data was retrieved the post had 47K reactions, 558K views and 3.4K comments. The same video was posted on YouTube and Twitter from multiple accounts.
Debunked Source
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?ref=saved&v=757686895589119
https://www.facebook.com/Sami.5U/videos/580999689941217/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MD_zYw-nQP8
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/J5ZPJlDcX3o
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/4bJzIeTR_10
https://twitter.com/IqraIhsan2/status/1529360713067958272?s=20&t=69giRCdameCdLpTjDWzh_A
https://twitter.com/DrFatimaPTI/status/1529357907216809985?s=20&t=69giRCdameCdLpTjDWzh_A
Fact Check
In order to investigate the claim, we checked for currently appointed SHO of Police Station Kohsar. According to reports, we found Inspector General of Police (IGP), Islamabad, Muhammad Ahsan Younas, has suspended SHO Shabbir Tanoli of Kohsar Police Station and replaced him with SHO Shalimar Police Station, Tipu Sultan, on 26th April 2022, for his failure to control the incidents of car theft. For further clarification we checked for official accounts of Islamabad Police on Facebook & Twitter and found that Islamabad Police has denied the rumors regarding resignation of SHO Kohsar and clarified that SHO Kohsar is on his duty. The person in the shared video is wearing a mask and the post doesn’t mention the name of the SHO but the person in the video resembles the suspended SHO of police station Kohsar; Shabbir Tanoli.
On further investigation of the matter, we found interview of the same person who claimed to be the SHO of Kohsar police station, in his interview the man clarified that he wasn’t a policeman and that he took the walkie-talkie from his uncle just for fun. He further said that he did not have an idea that his video will go viral on internet.
Source
https://twitter.com/ICT_Police/status/1529371301881708545
https://www.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=380209537470307&id=100064437919829&sfnsn=scwspmo
https://tribune.com.pk/story/2354244/3-shos-reprimanded-for-failing-to-curb-crime
Rating
Misinformation/Propaganda
Conclusion
Our research confirmed that the claims made are completely baseless and false. IGP Islamabad has denied the rumors. Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaaf supporters and few celebrities shared the post on their platforms, few people offered him job as well without verifying the authenticity. The post created a great hype on the internet.
ABCDE Framework-Based Analysis
| Actor | A pro-PTI Facebook page with huge number of followers and independent accounts on twitter are involved in spreading misinformation on social media. |
| Behavior | A video on social media claims that Station House Officer police station Kohsar in Islamabad has resigned from his position to support former Prime Minister Imran Khan. |
| Content | Social Media posts. |
| Degree | The content is being spread to promote PTI, however, it does not carry any potential harm or threat. The video is not forged or inauthentic, moreover no synthetic means are used to make the content viral. |
| Effect | The shared video was circulated to mislead the audience and portray that the government employee had abandoned his duties to take part in march/protest against the current government. This viral post added value to the popularity of Imran Khan and motivated people to take part in the political rally. |