Home Special Articles A Chronicle Of 20 Major Fake News Narratives Targeting The RSS

A Chronicle Of 20 Major Fake News Narratives Targeting The RSS

By
The Commune
-
RSS

Over the past eight years, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has been a persistent target of coordinated disinformation campaigns on social media, a fact-checking review reveals. This report examines 20 such viral claims, which have repeatedly attempted to link RSS volunteers to acts of vandalism, espionage, communal violence, and attacks on religious sites, often with the intent to stoke social discord and political polarization.

The 20 Fake News Narratives: Claim vs. Fact

#1 Fake Claim: RSS Bulldozes 1500-Year-Old Temple for Parking in Delhi (29 November 2025)

Claim: A viral video alleged that a 1400/1500-year-old temple in Delhi’s Jhandewalan area was bulldozed to create parking for an RSS office. Political parties accused the RSS of deliberately targeting the temple.

Fact: Ground reporting by local media institution ‘Ritam’ confirmed the municipal action was limited to removing illegal encroachments around the temple. The temple itself remained completely untouched and undamaged.

#2 Fake Claim: RSS Attacks Catholic School in Telangana (27 November 2025)

Claim: A video of chaos at a mass wedding event in Uttar Pradesh was shared with the false claim that it showed RSS members attacking a Catholic school in Telangana.

Fact: The video was from a stampede during a wedding ceremony in Hamirpur, UP. It had no connection to any school attack or the RSS.

#3 Fake Claim: RSS Workers Beaten by Public in Maharashtra (25 October 2025)

Claim: A video of a clash involving people in RSS-like uniforms was shared as evidence from Maharashtra, claiming the public was now beating up RSS workers for unlawful activities.

Fact: The incident occurred at Rajasthan University, Jaipur, on 30 September 2025, and was a clash between NSUI and RSS-linked student groups over a ‘Shastra Pujan’ event. It was not in Maharashtra.

#4 Fake Claim: List of 22 RSS Members Arrested for Spying for Pakistan (24 October 2025)

Claim: A list naming individuals like Dhruv Saxena and Chaman Lal was circulated by handles like Nidhi Singh Rathore, claiming they were BJP/RSS members caught spying for Pakistan.

 Fact: Fact-check by OnlyFact found the list to be fabricated. None of the named individuals were RSS members, and several names were fictional.

#5 Fake Claim: RSS Training Volunteers to Kill Christians in Chhattisgarh (18 February 2025)

Claim: A video of people in saffron taking an oath was falsely claimed to be from Chhattisgarh, where RSS volunteers were allegedly being trained to kill Christians.

Fact: The video was in Telugu, not from Chhattisgarh. It showed Bajrang Dal recruits taking an oath to protect Hinduism through physical and economic means, with no mention of Christians.

#6 Fake Claim: RSS Volunteers Hoist Saffron Flag on Women’s Toilet in Maharashtra (12 December 2024)

Claim: A video was shared claiming RSS workers in Aurangabad (Sambhajinagar) broke a women’s toilet board and hoisted a saffron flag on it.

Fact: The video was from March 2023, related to protests during the renaming of Aurangabad to Sambhajinagar. It was shared with a misleading caption years later.

#7 Fake Claim: RSS Member Caught with Arms for Sambhal Violence (6 December 2024)

Claim: A pro-Khalistan handle shared a video claiming an “RSS member” was caught alive with weapons and ammunition to incite communal violence in Sambhal.

Fact: The video was from 23 September 2019, showing the arrest of two arms smugglers, Jitendra and Raj Bahadur, in Ghaziabad. The case was about illegal weapons trafficking, with no link to RSS or Sambhal violence.

#8 Fake Claim: Asia’s Largest Slaughterhouse Owned by RSS-Linked Hindus (8 December 2023)

Claim: An infographic claimed Asia’s largest slaughterhouse, ‘Al-Kabeer,’ was owned by Hindus from Gujarat who were all RSS members.

Fact: The company refuted the claim, identifying itself as a Muslim-owned company. Ministry of Corporate Affairs records showed its Chairman and MD is Gulamuddin M. Sheikh.

#9 Fake Claim: RSS’s Brutal Training of Children Shown in Viral Video (14 October 2023)

Claim: A video of a man brutally beating a child was shared with captions like “This is how RSS trains children.”

Fact: The video was from a gurukul in Sitapur, Uttar Pradesh, from two months prior. Education officials confirmed the school had no affiliation with the RSS.

#10 Fake Claim: RSS Demands 100 Acres in Ayodhya for New Headquarters (14 February 2023)

Claim: Media reports claimed the RSS had sought 100 acres of land in Ayodhya’s township to build a new headquarters.

Fact: The claim was completely false and fabricated. The RSS office “Saket Nilayam” already exists in Ayodhya.

#11 Fake Claim: RSS Kills Dalit IAS Officer, Gang-Rapes Daughter (29 September 2020)

Claim: A CCTV footage of a murder in Nagpur was shared with the claim that RSS workers had murdered a Dalit IAS officer in broad daylight and gang-raped his daughter inside a car.

Fact: The video showed the murder of a gambling den operator named Balya Binekar by rival gangsters near the residence of then Home Minister Anil Deshmukh. It had no connection to any IAS officer or the RSS.

#12 Fake Claim: RSS Workers Harass Muslim Woman in India (7 July 2020)

Claim: A video of a burqa-clad woman being harassed by a group of men was shared, claiming “Sanghi (RSS) men” were harassing a Muslim woman in India.

Fact: The video was from Bangladesh, uploaded by Bangladeshi channels in November 2018. It had no connection to India or the RSS.

#13 Fake Claim: RSS Worker Attacks Woman Preparing Sehri (7 April 2020)

Claim: A collage of two photos claimed an RSS worker attacked a Hindu woman for trying to prepare sehri (pre-dawn meal) for a Muslim Kashmiri girl.

Fact: The two photos were unrelated. One was from April 2020, the other of an injured woman from a 2024 communal clash in Gujarat, as per TV9 Gujarat.

#14 Fake Claim: RSS’s Brutality on Youth in Delhi Violence (2 March 2020)

Claim: A video of a youth being brutally assaulted was shared as evidence of RSS brutality during the Delhi riots.

Fact: The video was from Nagaur, Rajasthan (February 2020), where two men were beaten on theft charges. It was unrelated to Delhi or the RSS.

#15 Fake Claim: RSS Goons Throw Vegetable Seller’s Produce in Sewer (26 February 2020)

Claim: A video of a vendor washing vegetables in a sewer was shared with the claim RSS goons threw his vegetables because he was Muslim.

Fact: The full video showed locals confronting the vendor for washing vegetables in sewer water. The vendor admitted his mistake, and no RSS link was established.

#16 Fake Claim: Edited Photo Shows RSS Volunteers Saluting Queen Elizabeth (29 January 2020)

Claim: A black-and-white photo showed RSS volunteers saluting Britain’s Queen Elizabeth, shared to question their patriotism.

Fact: The photo was an edited fake. The original was from Queen Elizabeth’s visit to Kaduna Airport, Nigeria, on February 2, 1956.

#17 Fake Claim: RSS Sets Christian Couple on Fire in UP (11 October 2019)

Claim: A video was shared claiming “RSS Hindu radicals” set a Christian couple on fire in UP for protesting land encroachment.

Fact: UP Police Fact Check clarified the couple was Hindu, not Christian. They had attempted self-immolation over a case of sexual harassment by a neighbor, with no RSS involvement.

#18 Fake Claim: RSS Beats and Parades Naked Christian Woman in Bihar (6 October 2019)

Claim: A video of a woman being beaten by a mob was shared, claiming RSS radicals had stripped and beaten a Christian woman.

Fact: The 2018 video was from Bihar’s Bihiya town. The mob attacked the woman based on allegations of her involvement in a youth’s death. Police confirmed no RSS connection.

#19 Fake Claim: Captured Terrorist Claims RSS Funds Him to Kill Hindus (16 February 2019)

Claim: A photo of a captured terrorist with text claiming he confessed that the RSS supplies weapons and money to kill Hindus to sow hatred against Muslims.

Fact: The terrorist, Abdul Qayum, was a Pakistani national from Sialkot arrested in Jammu’s Akhnoor in 2016. He had trained in Muridke, Pakistan. No RSS link was found.

#20 Fake Claim: RSS Distributes Sandals with Image of Jesus Christ in Gujarat (7 July 2017)

Claim: A photo of sandals with Jesus’s image was viral with the claim that the RSS was distributing them for free in Gujarat to incite riots.

Fact: The photo had gone viral globally around July 2016. No such incident was reported from Gujarat, and the claim was baseless.

Subscribe to our channels on WhatsApp, Telegram, Instagram and YouTube to get the best stories of the day delivered to you personally.

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR