A video of Sonam Wangchuk allegedly saying, “When China comes here, the people of Ladakh sacrifice lives to stop them. But now, if the Indian government is not doing anything for the people of Ladakh, why should we give our lives if there’s no protection for us? Next time if China invades India through Ladakh, we will not stop China but will show path to China getting inside”.
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However, as we investigated, we learned that the viral video had been clipped. Here’s the fact check.
Fact Check
We started our investigation by taking screenshots from the viral video and conducting a reverse image search. This led us to a YouTube channel where we found a longer version of the viral video uploaded on 12 March 2024. From the timestamp 1:37, Sonam Wangchuk says, “There’s a famous comedian here who says ‘ When China comes here, the people of Ladakh sacrifice lives to stop them. But now, if the Indian government is not doing anything for the people of Ladakh, why should we give our lives if there’s no protection for us? Next time if China invades India through Ladakh, we will not stop China but will show the path to China getting inside. After that police started questioning the comedian'”. Further he says, “… don’t kill the messenger, solve the problem…”
According to the caption, the video was from the seventh day of Sonam Wangchuk’s Climate Fast.
Moving forward, we found the same video on the official Facebook page of Sonam Wangchuk on 12 March 2024. The caption of the video read, “END OF 7th DAY Snowed heavily in the morning but the sun quickly melted it In this tiny town some 500 people gathered today even on a week day. 100s of university students, all the advocates of the Bar association, monks, nuns, retired soldiers and all. People’s frustration is growing at government’s apathy. It’s best they take timely measures rather than further alienate the people of this sensitive border area. Our neighbours will only be too happy to see Talks & relations break down. May sense prevail in time. रहिमन धागा प्रेम का, मत तोड़ो चटकाय टूटे से फिर ना जुड़े, जुड़े गाँठ परि जाय”
We found the viral clip from the timestamp 1:37 where Sonam Wangchuk says, “There’s a famous comedian here who says ‘ When China comes here, the people of Ladakh sacrifice lives to stop them. But now, if the Indian government is not doing anything for the people of Ladakh, why should we give our lives if there’s no protection for us? Next time if China invades India through Ladakh, we will not stop China but will show the path to China getting inside. After that police started questioning the comedian'”. Further he says, “… don’t kill the messenger, solve the problem…”
This makes it clear that Sonam Wangchuk didn’t say that the people of Ladakh will show China the path to India, if China invades India. Sonam Wangchuk was quoting a comedian in the original video.
Conclusion
From our investigation, we can say that the viral video is altered. Sonam Wangchuk didn’t say that the people of Ladakh will show China the path to India if China invades India. Sonam Wangchuk was quoting a comedian in the original video. The viral video has been clipped from the original video.
