Telangana incident involving hawker 'ejaculating over ice cream' given communal spin

(Disclaimer: This article contains descriptions of sexually graphic content. Reader discretion is advised.)

What is the claim?

A 22-second video clip depicting a hawker at a roadside stall has been shared with the claim that the man, who is purportedly ejaculating over the ice cream mixture he was preparing, belongs to the Muslim community. One such post surfaced on X (formerly Twitter), alleging that the incident occurred in the southern Indian state of Telangana and portrays a "Jihadi terrorist... masturbating and adding his semen to the ice cream." 

Accompanying the video is a photograph purportedly showing the man's arrest by the local police. Archived versions of these posts can be accessed here, here, and here. 

Screenshot of the viral social media post (Source: X/Modified by Logically Facts)

However, the accused individual is not Muslim.

What did we find?

Numerous news outlets, such as The Times of India, India Today, and News18, covered the incident, which occurred in the Nekkonda area of Telangana's Warangal district. These reports consistently identified the man in the video as "Kaluram Kurbia." Citing police sources, these reports detailed that a case was registered against the man, leading to his arrest.

Logically Facts obtained a copy of the First Information Report (FIR) filed at the Nekkonda Police Station. According to the FIR, the event transpired on March 17, 2024, at the Ambedkar Centre in Nekkonda, with a formal complaint lodged on March 19. The FIR outlines that the man depicted in the video was captured on camera engaging in public masturbation on March 17, with the video subsequently circulating on WhatsApp.

According to the FIR, law enforcement identified him as Kalu Ram Purbiya, a resident of Surawas village in the Bhilwara district of Rajasthan, a state in northern India. Authorities have charged him under Section 294 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), which pertains to obscene acts in public places.

Screenshot of the FIR filed by the Nekkonda police (Source: tspolice.gov.in)

Logically Facts contacted the Nekkonda police for additional information. Police Sub-Inspector M Mahender confirmed the incident in Nekkonda and the individual's subsequent arrest. He clarified that Kalu Ram is not Muslim but belongs to the Hindu Yadav caste in Rajasthan. Additionally, he informed us that the container in which the act was performed was sent for further analysis, and the remaining ice cream stock in the cart was disposed of.

The verdict

A video circulating purportedly showing a man in Telangana ejaculating into an ice cream container in public has been accompanied by a communal narrative alleging his Muslim identity. However, the accused individual is a Hindu hailing from Rajasthan. Therefore, we have marked this claim as false.