Video of sandal thrown at PML-N’s Ahsan Iqbal is an old one from Islamabad, not new from Narowal

The iVerify Pakistan team has checked this content and has established that it is false since it is an old video from a previous incident at a different location.

To arrive at this verdict, the iVerify Pakistan team analysed the video and sourced it back to an incident outside the Parliament House in March 2021.

HOW IT STARTED

The earliest mention of the video the iVerify Pakistan team found was by a PTI supporter on January 13, 2024. The video showed PML-N leader Ahsan Iqbal amidst a crowd while a sandal is later flung at him.

The video subsequently circulated on Jan 15 with a post from journalist Sabee Kazmi gaining over 80,000 views.

The video was shared by a fan page for journalist Kashif Abbasi as well, gaining over 14,000 views, and placed it as being set during the start of the PML-N leader’s election campaign.

Two more posts from PTI supporters gained over 28,000 and 101,000 views, respectively.

Another post examined was shared with the caption: “The people threw a shoe at Ahsan Iqbal of PML-N from Narowal during the election campaign.”

METHODOLOGY

Investigating the video to determine its veracity, the iVerify Pakistan team conducted a keyword search on “Ahsan Iqbal” and “shoe thrown” and found several videos uploaded to YouTube on March 6, 2021.

The first video by Dawn News was the same as the current one being circulated, showing a sandal being thrown at Iqbal during a public rally.

A second video by Bol News was an interview of the PML-N leader from March 6 on the incident itself.

The team found several news articles on the incident from the same date from leading English publications.

A Dawn.com story titled: “PML-N leaders, PTI workers come to blows outside NA ahead of PM trust vote,” said that PML-N leaders were speaking to the media outside the Parliament House ahead of a vote of confidence for then-prime minister Imran Khan.

It said that a brawl subsequently occurred between the PML-N and PTI supporters. “Another clip showed Iqbal being hit by a shoe from afar while PML-N supporters around him raised slogans in favour of party supremo Nawaz Sharif,” the article said.

A March 11 story by Geo also made reference to the incident, saying that “a Peshawari chappal was also thrown at Ahsan Iqbal as he stood on a platform and shouted slogans criticising the government.”

BACKGROUND

March 6 was the date of the vote of confidence for former premier Imran. The opposition parties at the time and their alliance, the Pakistan Democratic Movement, had boycotted the proceedings.

Allegations and counter-allegations were thrown by the PML-N and the PTI on that day about whose supporters were responsible for initiating the brawl outside the Parliament House.

Imran, who had needed 172 votes to win the confidence vote, secured 178 votes on the day.

CONCLUSION

The iVerify team has determined that the claim attached to the video circulating on social media is false as it is an old video from March 2021of a sandal hurled at Iqbal outside the Parliament House in Islamabad rather than having anything to do with his current election campaign in Narowal.