Old video shared as gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari's son vowing ‘revenge’ for father’s death

What is the claim?

Indian gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari died March 28 of cardiac arrest in the state of Uttar Pradesh, where he had been a five-time MLA (Member of Legislative Assembly). Ansari breathed his last in the hospital where he was brought from a prison in Banda district. After the death, a video surfaced on social media claiming that Abbas Ansari, son of Mukhtar Ansari, threatened 'revenge' against police officials following his father's death. In the video, Ansari is seen addressing a crowd, stating that he asked Akhilesh Yadav, former Chief Minister of UP and the national president of the political party— Samajwadi Party (SP), not to transfer anyone for six months, and that 'scores' will be settled during this period. Only after that will any transfer certificate be stamped, he further announced in the viral video. 

Sharing the video on Facebook and tagging the office of a senior police official, one user wrote, "Take cognizance with immediate effect @dgpup Those who are mourning the death of terrorist Mukhtar Ansari, listen to Mukhtar's son once 👇 Open threats to officers." The post garnered over 100,000 views and 3,100 likes at the time of writing. Archived versions of such posts can be accessed here and here.

Screenshots of the viral posts. (Source: X/Modified by Logically Facts)

However, the claim is misleading. An old video of Abbas Ansari giving a speech during the 2022 UP Assembly elections has been reshared after his father's death without proper context. 

What did we find?

A reverse image search on the keyframes of the viral clip revealed that it dates back to March 2022. News agency ANI's X (formerly Twitter) handle, dedicated to updates from UP and Uttarakhand, published the viral video on March 3, 2022. The post said that Abbas Ansari was the SP alliance candidate from the Mau seat in Uttar Pradesh. Reacting to his speech, Mau Superintendent of Police Ghule Sushil said, "Taking cognizance of the viral video, we've registered a case against Mau Sadar constituency candidate Abbas Ansari for violation of the Model Code of Conduct." 

The Times of India also published the same video on March 04, 2022, with the title "Told Akhilesh bhaiya (brother) not to transfer officials for six months as 'hisab kitab' (scores settlement) will happen first: Mukhtar's son Abbas Ansari."

According to a report by India Today, ADG Law and Order Prashant Kumar verified the authenticity of the video and ordered that an FIR be registered against Ansari for violating the Model Code of Conduct imposed in the poll season. During the state assembly elections, voting in the Mau assembly was scheduled for March 7, 2022, and the video surfaced just a few days before the polls, the report added. Ansari contested and won as a candidate of the Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party (SBSP), in alliance with the Samajwadi Party, during the 2022 Uttar Pradesh assembly polls. 

Moreover, Mau police also issued a police statement on March 4, announcing that a case had been registered against Abbas Ansari under Section 171F and 506 of the Indian Penal Code for violating the Model Code of Conduct.

Abbas behind bars 

Further, we found reports stating that Abbas Ansari is currently in jail and could not attend the last rites of his father. His family members tried to obtain orders allowing parole for Abbas Ansari but didn't succeed as the courts were closed due to Good Friday. Abbas was transferred to Kasganj district jail in UP last February and had been previously held in Chitrakoot jail in connection with a money laundering case by the Enforcement Directorate. His father had been behind bars since 2005 following his alleged role in a communal riot. 

The verdict

An old video of Abbas Ansari making a controversial speech during the 2022 UP assembly elections was falsely linked to his father, Mukhtar Ansari's recent death. The video doesn't show Abbas threatening revenge for his father's death. Instead, it shows him allegedly threatening officials in the run-up to the 2022 UP polls. Therefore, we have marked this claim as misleading.