On February 29, 2024, videos claiming that a bottle was thrown at Nawaz Sharif during the inaugural session of the National Assembly circulated on social media and news channels. However, it was actually Imran Khan’s mask that was thrown by party members.
Bottle thrown at Nawaz Sharif during the inaugural session of NA
The iVerify Pakistan team has checked this content and has established that it is misleading.
To arrive at this verdict, the iVerify Pakistan team checked videos of the National Assembly session from various angles.
On February 29, 2024, an X user shared a clip with the claim: “Someone threw a bottle while Mian Nawaz Sharif was signing in the National Assembly.”.
The clip got over 40,000 views on social media platform X and the user is affiliated with Dunya News according to his bio.
The news “Bottle thrown at Nawaz Sharif” was also aired on ARY News and shared on their X and You Tube.
ABN news also shared the same claim.
The same clip with a similar caption was shared on multiple social media platforms here, here, here, and here.
The iVerify Pakistan team sought to determine the veracity of the claim, as the video featuring the alleged incident of a bottle being thrown at the PML-N supreme leader was aired on different news channels and circulated on social media.
The team examined the video and concluded that it was not a bottle but a face mask of Imran Khan that was thrown at Nawaz while he was signing at the speakers’ table in the NA.
Several leaders of PTI wore masks of Imran Khan’s face in the National Assembly to represent their incarcerated leader.
Sher Afzal Marwat, Ali Mohammad Khan, Shandana Gulzar, and Zartaj Gul were some of the prominent faces that appeared wearing the mask.
Upon further investigation, the team also found a clip on Instagram with a caption “Scene of Imran Khan’s face mask being thrown at Nawaz Sharif” shared by newspaper Independent Urdu.
In the clip, the team can clearly see that the Imran Khan mask was thrown, targeting Nawaz; however, it actually landed on Shehbaz Sharif’s shoulder.
Nawaz was conversing with NA speaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf at the time of the incident.
According to Dawn.com, the 16th inaugural session of National Assembly took place on Feb 29.
After the oath-taking, PML-N Supremo Nawaz and other MNAs went to sign the NA roll of members, while the PTI-backed MNAs circled the speaker’s dais and chanted slogans.
The iVerify Pakistan team has determined that the claim regarding the bottle being thrown at Nawaz Sharif is misleading.
When observed from the front, it becomes apparent that an item was indeed thrown; it was a mask of Imran Khan, not a bottle, that landed near his brother.
