A video (here, here, here) of a few men assaulting an individual is being shared on social media with a claim that Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) party workers attacked BJP IT and District Secretary, Rajesh Biju. Let’s verify the authenticity of the claim made through this article.
Claim: Video of BJP leader, Rajesh Biju being thrashed by DMK party workers.
Fact: The men seen in the video are not DMK party members. Video shows S. Subbiah, the General Secretary of the Chennai East District BJP and his supporters assaulting Rajesh Biju, the BJP IT Division Secretary. The fight happened over a video of Subbiah consuming alcohol gaining traction on social media. Suspecting Rajesh’s involvement in the matter, Subbiah, accompanied by his supporters, physically assaulted Rajesh. Hence, the claim made in the post is False.
A search on the internet with relevant keywords led to an article published on 1 Aug 2023, which reported that S. Subbiah, the General Secretary of the Chennai East District BJP, allegedly attacked Rajesh Biju, the BJP IT Division Secretary. Additionally, we also found a video (archive) published on ‘Malaimurasu TV’ YouTube channel reporting the same.
When searched on the internet with the above details, we found a news report from ETV Bharat which reported that the fight happened over a video of S. Subbiah drinking alcohol gaining traction on social media. Suspecting Rajesh’s involvement in the matter, Subbiah, accompanied by his supporters, physically assaulted Rajesh. A case was also filed against Subbiah for attacking his own party member.
Furthermore, we have come across a recent tweet (archive) from the Greater Chennai Police on their official ‘X’ account, stating that the incident depicted in the viral video didn’t happen recently but instead occurred on 31 July 2023. They also indicated that the video pertains to a personal dispute between two factions of a political party in Nanganallur.
To sum up, an old video of a fight between two factions of the BJP is shared as an attack by DMK members on a BJP leader.
