Fake News Real Impact | How Violence Is Spreading in UP Villages Due to Theft Related Rumours

In this special report by The Quint, we have tried to find out of the root-cause of these incidents. When we went to the ground, we witnessed the fear of drones, conspiracy theories linked to Nepal’s GenZ protests, villagers guarding their homes with sticks and batons, and the victims of the violence.

The report will try to find the answers to three major questions:

• Who are the ones spreading these rumours?

• What steps is the local administration taking to stop them?

• Who are the people that have been affected by the rumours?

We went to the Khirauni village in Uttar Pradesh’s Ayodhya district to find out what kind of fear is plaguing the villages of the state. On reaching there, we saw many people carrying sticks and batons and keeping watch.

On asking the reason behind them guarding their homes, the villagers claimed that drones come everyday, and these drones are used to conduct a recce. We asked them if they could show us any such drones conducting recce. The villagers answered us by saying that since we had come today, perhaps that is why no drone was visible. Otherwise, it is seen everyday.

We moved ahead from this place and later arrived at Kalipurwa village. We found that along with men, women were also guarding their homes. They claimed that they had seen cameras flying.

But we found one commonality.