Claim: A large majority of Pakistanis believe that Aurat March should be banned, according to a survey. Fact: A Twitter poll about Aurat March carried out by talk show host Maleeha Hashmey, who is known for her right-wing, conservative views, is being shared as a representative survey by various news outlets. The poll cannot be […]
Claim: A video circulating on social media shows Lahore Qalandars’ fans celebrating their team’s PSL victory at the Liberty Roundabout in Lahore. Fact: The video is actually of an independence day celebration from 14 August 2021. Fact or Fiction? On 28 February 2022, Facebook page Sunday Times posted a video claiming it shows fans celebrating […]
Claim: In a speech at the Oxford Islamic Center, Prince Charles of Wales said, “The rights that my grandmother did not have until a few decades ago, Islam has given all those rights to women 1400 years ago.” Fact: The quote attributed to Prince Charles is not accurate. During a speech in 1993, Prince Charles […]
Claim: Lay’s chips sold in Pakistan contain a food additive derived from pork, making them unsuitable for Muslims. Fact: Lay’s Pakistan’s chips contain the additive E631, which is derived from plants not animal fat. The chips do not contain any pork. Fact or Fiction? On 30 January 2022, Facebook user Shah Baba shared a video […]
Claim: The Lahore District Court has issued arrest warrants for activist Leena Ghani and singer Meesha Shafi in a criminal defamation case registered under the cybercrime law by musician Ali Zafar. Zafar has accused Ghani and Shafi of running a ‘malicious campaign’ against him on social media. Fact: On 19 February 2022, the Lahore District […]
Claim: Posts circulating on Facebook claim that the station house officer (SHO) of the Civil Lines police station Muzaffargarh Mr Iftikhar Malkani arrested a couple on Valentine’s Day and forced them to get married at the police station. The posts are accompanied by an image allegedly depicting Malkani with the arrested couple, and others. Fact: […]
Claim: Three Pakistani universities issued guidelines for Valentine’s Day, directing male students to wear caps and female students to cover their heads, as well as forbidding “gender mixing”. Fact: All three universities in question have confirmed the notifications are fake. On 12 February 2022, copies of notifications allegedly issued by three Pakistani universities — Riphah […]
Claim: A Facebook page shared a post about plans to restore and renovate historic buildings in Sheikh Badin National Park, along with an image apparently depicting one such building. Fact: The image is in fact of the Great Mosque of Djenne, also known as Timbuktu Djinguereber Mosque, which is located in Mali and not in […]
Claim: Social media posts claimed that hotels in Murree started overcharging tourists during and in the aftermath of a snowstorm that enveloped the region in January. According to claims, rooms that typically cost PKR 3000 per night were being rented out for between PKR 40,000 and PKR 70,000 per night. Additionally, people were being asked […]
Claim: A website shared a story with the headline, “Do not use this medicine, it is causing kidney failure. Doctors have suggested it as dangerous.” Included in the story were remarks from a conference held in Pakistan during which the side effects of allopathic medicine were discussed. Allopathic medicine is another term for science-based, modern […]
Claim: A misleading tweet claimed that “75% Pakistanis have never read a book outside their syllabus,” citing Gallup Pakistan, a survey research and consultancy firm affiliated with Gallup International, as an official source. Fact: Gallup Pakistan did not release any survey results indicating that 75% of Pakistanis have never read a book outside their class […]
Claim: An Urdu news website published an article with a headline that translated into English reads as, “The marriage registration process has been ended across the country. A new process will be introduced.” The article stated that the changes, which consist of digitising the marriage registration process, will help root out fake marriages and fraud […]